About A Girl
by SouthernBlossom
Summary: Ten-year-old Lily Wesley has just lost the only parents she's ever known. But she's about to find out that there's a whole lot more to her than she'd ever thought, and that she has family she never knew about. Rated T for possible spanking of minors.
1. Prologue

Sister Teresa knelt at the altar of St. Margaret Mary Catholic Church, head bowed in prayer. It was custom for the young sister to pray at this time of night; the church was filled with a calm silence that seemed to just welcome her prayers. Barely twenty, Sister Teresa had only taken her vows months earlier, and had been assigned to St. Margaret Mary to help watch over the large church in-between Sundays.

Accustomed to the silence, Sister Teresa was startled to hear the heavy doors leading outside open behind her. She never locked those doors at night, believing that God intended the church to be a place of refuge and sanctuary, but it was nearly ten and in the three months she'd been there, Sister Teresa had never had anyone arrive mid-week after dark.

Slowly standing, Sister Teresa turned and watched as a cloaked, hooded figure approached, carefully carrying a bundle wrapped in blankets. As the figure neared, Sister Teresa could see it was a young woman dressed in a light blue 'dress' and cloak, and in her arms was a small infant. The young woman looked barely eighteen – practically a child herself. "My child, are you all right?" she asked softly.

The young woman took a deep breath, blinking away un-shed tears. "My baby… I need to hide her. Somewhere they won't find her."

Sister Teresa could immediately tell that this young woman wasn't from the area; if she'd had to guess, the woman's accent was British or Scottish. "Where who won't find her? Are you in danger, child?"

"My baby is," the young woman said quietly, as though 'they' might hear her. "Can you find her a home? She'll be safe here, until I can come back for her." When Sister Teresa didn't speak for a moment, the young woman let out a soft choked sob. "Please!" she begged desperately. "If they find out she exists, they will kill her!"

She had no idea who she was supposed to protect this baby from, but Sister Teresa knew they had to be dangerous. "Are you sure they won't find her around here?"

"They don't know I'm here, and they won't know she's here. I'm a long way from home and where they are; my baby will be safe here. Please, will you find her a home?"

"I will do whatever I can," Sister Teresa promised. "I do know of a couple who have been looking to adopt for a while now; I am sure they would provide a safe, loving home for your baby. What is her name?"

The young woman seemed to sigh in relief. "Lily. Her name is Lily." She hugged the bundle closer to her, kissing it gently. "I hate having to do this, but it's the only way I can keep you safe," she whispered to the sleeping infant as tears pooled in her eyes. "I love you, my Lily." Kissing her one more time, she carefully handed her only child over to Sister Teresa, holding back a sob. "Thank you…" she whispered tearfully, turning to leave before she lost her nerve.

Sister Teresa glanced down at the baby in her arms. She was a beautiful little thing; how could anyone want to hurt something so innocent? She looked back up quickly, but the young woman was gone.


	2. Alone

The wind howled and shook the tree branches as the rain came down in sheets. Inside a cozy two-story house in the historic district of Sanford, Florida, in an upstairs bedroom, a pixie of a girl was curled up on the window seat. Her golden blonde locks were pulled back into two braids as she watched the raging storm outside. How fitting, she thought, the weather was, as it mirrored her own mood almost perfectly.

Seven days. Seven long days since the accident, since the only parents she'd ever known had been snatched away from her in a fatal car crash. Seven days since she'd spoken a word to anyone. It wasn't for lack of trying on their part – the officers at the scene, the social worker with the Department of Children and Families, and Mrs. Clarke, her new foster mother, had all tried to get something out of the silent ten-year-old other than the occasional tear that peeked out from her eyes. At this point, they didn't care what reaction they got, as long as they got some sort of reaction. But she wouldn't budge.

Lily Anne Wesley was mad.

She was mad at her parents for leaving her all alone. She was mad at the drunk driver who had smashed into them driving 70 mph in a 25 mph zone. She was mad at DCF for sticking her in a foster home. But mostly, Lily was mad at God for once again taking away her parents. He'd taken away her birth parents when she was just a baby – it was his fault that her mother had had to give her up less than a month after she'd been born. And now, he'd taken away the people who had adopted her nearly eleven years ago, who she'd known as her mother and father. John and Clara Wesley, Lily's adoptive parents, were a bit older and had no living relatives able to care for a child, so Lily had been taken into the custody of the State of Florida. DCF had placed her 'temporarily' in the care of Mrs. Dorothy Clarke, a sweet middle-aged woman with four other foster children in her care ranging in age from five to seventeen. They had said temporarily, assuring Lily that she'd soon have new parents, but she knew that was a lie. Who wanted to adopt an almost eleven-year-old? She was two years shy of being a teenager, and nobody wanted to adopt teenagers. They had too much 'baggage' by that time.

Not that Mrs. Clarke was horrible to stay with. She'd done everything she could possibly think of to help ease the transition for Lily, to make her feel more comfortable. And Lily didn't really hate her… just the situation she had been abruptly thrown into.

A tear trickled down her cheek, and she wiped it away angrily. She'd told herself she wasn't going to cry – not in front of anyone else, at least. For the past week she'd waited until everyone had gone to sleep at night before finally letting the tears fall silently. If they saw her cry, they'd start hovering over her even more and she just knew that would cause the dam inside her to break and all of the emotions she'd kept pent up recently would come flooding out. The last thing Lily needed right then was to break down.

"Lily Anne…?" A tentative voice drifted up into her room, and she knew Mrs. Clarke was calling to her from downstairs. Lily hated to be called 'Lily Anne' – she felt like she was in trouble when someone used her middle name – but Mrs. Clarke was the epitome of a Southern woman, and it was apparently a Southern thing to be referred to by both names. "Lily Anne, it's time for dinner, sweetie…"

Unable to ignore the rumbling of her stomach, Lily slowly stood and shuffled to the bathroom to splash some water on her face before heading down to spend another meal hiding the pain she felt inside.

o o o o o

He glanced at the modern, middle-class homes on either side of the street. He'd seen the lower- and middle-class homes in London and other parts of the UK, and these buildings didn't resemble those in the slightest. They definitely were far from home, but exactly where, he wasn't sure. "Hermione, where exactly are we?" he asked curiously, taking in his new surroundings.

"Sanford, I believe, is the name of the town."

"Sanford…? I haven't heard of such a town. Where on earth is Sanford?"

"Florida," replied a young woman, as if the revelation that they were in Florida would be no big deal to her companion. She had a gentle smile on her face, her naturally bushy hair pulled back into a single braid. To any onlooker, she appeared to be a 'normal' person, dressed in a cardigan set, clean-cut jeans, and a pair of loafers. Her companion was similarly dressed, a polo shirt and a blazer replacing the cardigan set. But Hermione Granger-Weasley and Remus Lupin were far from what most people would consider 'normal.' They were magic – a witch and a wizard, to be precise, and they were far from Hogwarts, the school Hermione taught at and both had attended in their adolescence. Their journey, orchestrated by Professor Minerva McGonagall, Headmistress of Hogwarts, had taken them to a small city in the United States, thousands of miles from their homes in the U.K. Remus had been slightly uncomfortable having to dress completely in muggle clothing, but Hermione had reveled in the opportunity, gladly setting aside her robes. They could've worn their robes, but it would have been dreadfully hot, and the last thing they wanted to do was to attract attention to them. As it was, Hermione was already hot in the jeans, but she had to look respectable and somehow she didn't think she could manage that in something shorter. A skirt was out of the question, considering the amount of walking they were doing.

Remus, however, stopped in his tracks. "Wait… You mean to tell me we're in the _United States_? Not only are we in another country, but we're on a completely different continent?"

Hermione chuckled softly as she stopped, turning to face him. "Don't sound so surprised, Remus. Professor McGonagall did say we'd be traveling quite a ways – that is why we took a portkey instead of the Floo Network or Apparating, after all."

"Hermione, I can't recall ever hearing about an American student at Hogwarts. Letters are sent, of course, but I thought the American witches and wizards typically attended Salem."

She nodded. It was true; in the seven years she'd taught muggle studies at Hogwarts, Hermione had never seen a student there from the United States. American witches and wizards had traditionally attended the Salem Institute of Magic. However, the child they were here to find was not your typical magical child. "I know. But Professor McGonagall told me that this girl isn't American; at least, not by birth. Her parents are both from Britain and attended Hogwarts, but she refused to reveal their identities. From what I gathered, if the wrong people find out about her and she isn't properly protected, her life will be in danger." Nodding her head slightly in the opposite direction, she motioned that they should continue on their journey.

"So, where are we collecting her? Her home?"

The young woman shook her head slightly. "Did the headmistress tell you nothing?"

Remus shook his head 'no' in response. "Only that you were on a mission to come find a child brought up by muggles and that she would fell better if I accompanied you."

"We're picking her up from her school, and I'll fill you in as best as I can while we walk. It shouldn't take more than five more minutes, I believe. The girl's name is Lily Wesley. She'll be eleven next month. Shortly after her birth, Lily was adopted by American muggles, for reasons the headmistress has chosen not to divulge. Last week, however, the family was in an auto accident, and Lily's adoptive parents were killed. She's been in foster care since, so obviously this is already a difficult situation."

"And how are we going to just take this child away without anyone noticing or realizing she's missing? I'm not very skilled with memory charms, Hermione. I'm sure you are, but I figured you'd be the one convincing this poor girl that we're not some kidnappers out to rape or murder her."

Hermione replied rather nonchalantly. "Professor McGonagall already worked that out. Ah, I think that's the school up ahead!" Abandoning the subject of exactly how she was going to pick up this child, Hermione pointed to a campus of sprawled out one-story buildings, all connected by covered walkways. "Jackson Elementary School – yes, that's it."

As Hermione picked up the pace, Remus had to struggle to keep up with her. Really, for a wizard/werewolf in his late forties, Remus was in good shape, but when Hermione got focused on something, it could still be difficult to keep up, both mentally and physically. "You know," he told her casually in-between breaths, "Lily will still be there in five minutes. We don't have to hurry so…"

She just laughed softly, not slowing in the least until they reached the double doors of the front office. Remus, always the gentleman, held the door for her, not entering the building until after she had. Hermione immediately approached the long wraparound desk, smiling congenially at an elderly woman seated on the other side. "Good morning! My name is Hermione Granger and I am here to pick up Lily Wesley." She purposely left off the 'Weasley,' having a feeling it might sound a bit odd to the American muggles. Pulling out a piece of parchment, she handed it to the woman. "This should explain everything."

The woman glanced at the parchment momentarily, her eyes glazing over just briefly, before nodding cheerfully, returning it to Hermione. "Yes, yes. Seems everything is in order. Let me have Lily brought up here." She walked around the desk and down a hallway, leaving Hermione and Remus to wait in her absence. Hermione pocketed the parchment before turning to Remus. "We need to go someplace quiet to talk to Lily, before we travel back home. Just taking her like that would probably scare her to death."

"I take it you have a place in mind?" he asked her knowingly.

She nodded. "I do, in fact. There is a little place similar to the Leaky Cauldron maybe a half of a kilometer from here. I think we'll be able to talk to her there without worrying about who might hear."

A minute later, the older woman returned with a pixie of a girl who was wearing a lavender-colored backpack. The top of her head barely reached Hermione's shoulders, and Hermione wasn't exactly a tall woman. Smiling warmly, Hermione extended a hand to the ten-year-old. "Hi, Lily. My name is Hermione Granger."

Studying Hermione carefully, Lily grasped her hand. "It's nice to meet you, Ms. Granger," she replied quietly.

"This gentleman here is my friend, and we've come to take you to your new home. Will you come with us?"

Lily studied the two adults in front of her. The man seemed uncomfortable, and adjusted the waist of his pants a few times. Still, he offered a smile that didn't raise the hairs on the back of her neck. And the woman… Hermione Granger, she'd said her name was… well she didn't make Lily feel all that uncomfortable, either.

However, Lily knew there was much that the two weren't telling her. For starters, Hermione Granger wasn't exactly a common name. For another, neither of them was from the States – Lily would've bet almost anything on that. She had many suspicions, but the front office of her school was hardly the place to voice such suspicions, especially when she didn't know what their ulterior motives were. If her suspicions were correct, however, Lily knew that they could easily force her to go with them, and since she didn't appear to have much of a say in the matter, Lily figured the most logical choice would be to go willingly. At least that way, they wouldn't be aware of her suspicions for a bit longer.

"Okay," she agreed softly, nodding her head as she spoke for the first time in a week. Lily wasn't sure why, but she felt that she actually wanted to talk to them. They certainly weren't from DCF, so she was sure she wasn't about to be shuffled to some other foster home. It intrigued her. And they hadn't tried to get her to talk about her parents, which as far as Lily was concerned was probably the best thing of all. "But what about my stuff at Mrs. Clarke's?" Lily didn't have much there, but what she did have she cherished and she knew she'd break down and lose it if she couldn't bring those things with her.

"We'll take care of that, Lily," Hermione assured her. "In fact, I've talked with Social Services already, and they've sent someone to Mrs. Clarke's home to collect your belongings. We'll go pick those up before we leave. I'm sure you have many questions for us, though, and I'd like to give you the opportunity to ask them before we travel anywhere. There's a little inn down the road that you might've passed by before, and I thought that would be a perfect place for us to chat. Is that all right with you?"

Lily paused again, checking for any hint or subtle body language that would indicate Hermione was lying or leading her on, but she found none. "All right. Is it far?"

Hermione shook her head. "Not far at all. I think it's maybe a ten-minute walk from here. Shall we go, then?"

Nodding once more, Lily adjusted the straps of her backpack on her shoulders and followed the adults out of her school, glancing over her shoulder every minute or two, watching as the school grew smaller and smaller in the distance. Somehow, in some way, she knew she wouldn't be back there again.

o o o o o

Fifteen minutes later, the trio found themselves inside a little hole-in-the-wall place called Merlin's. They found a booth, Hermione choosing to sit next to Remus while Lily took a seat opposite them. Hermione waited until they had ordered lunch before bringing up the subject of why they were there. "All right, Lily. You've been very patient and trusting, so go ahead and ask any questions you have. We'll fill in the blanks from there."

Lily looked at Remus, tilting her head to the side slightly. "I don't know your name…"

He gave her a gentle, friendly smile, and Lily knew instantly that he wasn't going to hurt her. "My name is Remus Lupin."

She nodded slightly to herself. '_Nope,'_ she thought. '_They're definitely not from the States.'_ "So where are you and Ms. Granger from? Not Salem, that's for sure."

Remus blinked, clearly surprised and confused at the same time. "I beg your pardon?" he asked, trying to grasp what she'd just said as he glanced at Hermione to find a similar shocked expression on her face. It was highly unlikely that she would be talking about any Salem other than the Salem Institute of Magic located there in the States, but Hermione hadn't hinted in any way that she might know about anything related to magic.

"You're a wizard," Lily told him simply, as if they were discussing the weather. "And you're a witch," she added, nodding at Hermione.

Hermione was the first to recover from her surprise. She smiled at Lily and nodded. "How did you know that, Lily?"

"Well you can't be from Salem," she explained to Hermione, feeling comfortable enough to explain. Finally she was around people who would understand about the 'weird' things that happened when she was especially upset or angry or scared. "Your accents sound British and the likelihood that I'd have two people with British-sounding accents visiting me from Salem didn't seem very high. As for knowing you're a witch and a wizard…" Lily paused to shrug slightly. "Well, that one is easy. You brought me here to Merlin's, which you can't even see unless you're a witch or a wizard or you're with one. And Mr. Lupin looks uncomfortable in his clothes, so I'm guessing he's not accustomed to wearing Muggle clothing. You both are wearing extremely warm clothing, considering the weather, most likely because you needed someplace to hide your wands. I mean, nobody from Florida wears long sleeves or cardigans or jackets when it's 80-something degrees outside."

This time, Hermione chuckled softly. "You're a very clever girl, Lily, and very perceptive. But how is it that you know about witches and wizards? Remus and I were told you wouldn't know anything about it."

"My Aunt Mary was a witch," Lily said, her voice quieting at the memory. Mary Snyder had been her mom's sister and her favorite aunt, and it had just about devastated Lily when she'd been told nearly three years ago that her aunt died suddenly. And now she didn't have her parents either… Lily couldn't suppress the tears that pooled in her eyes, and she sniffled softly. "She's… she's the one who told me about who I am… that I'm a witch, too…"

She watched as Hermione scooted out of the other side of the bench and immediately sat beside her, putting a comforting arm around her shoulders. And then it happened. The dam that Lily had worked so hard to keep up for seven long, miserable days finally burst. Without thinking, she buried her face in the Hermione's sweater; not caring that she'd just met the woman.

Lily did something that she'd forced herself not to do since the day her world had crashed around her. She cried.


	3. More Questions Than Answers

Chapter 2: More Questions than Answers

Lily was vaguely aware of two arms wrapping around her, holding her as a hand cradled tenderly stroked her hair. She felt all of the emotions she'd held in for so long begin to melt away, and for the first time since the accident, her heart felt a little lighter. It was like a weight had been lifted off of her shoulders. She had cried, and someone had comforted her, and somehow it had helped a bit.

Still, it was slightly embarrassing to have just bawled her eyes out on someone she'd just met, and so reluctantly Lily pulled back and wiped her eyes with her fingers as she tried to breathe through a now stuffy nose. "Sorry," she said softly.

"Nonsense," Hermione said, reaching out to gently lift Lily's chin so she could see her face. "There is nothing wrong with crying, Lily. You've just had your world turned upside down, and you have every reason to feel sad."

"Your sweater is a mess…" Lily insisted, still feeling a bit guilty.

Hermione glanced down at her sweater and chuckled before glancing back at Lily. "This?" she said, pointing to a rather large wet spot on her cardigan. "This is nothing, darling. My children have done far worse." That said, she withdrew her wand from the cardigan, pointed it at the spot, and smiled as it instantly vanished.

"Here," Remus said from across the table, and Lily turned her head quickly, watching as he pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and offered it to her. Lily took it, murmuring a 'thank you' as she wiped her face and blew her nose.

The moment Lily was done, Hermione tapped the handkerchief with her wand, just as she had her cardigan, and Lily watched as the square piece of cloth looked good as new. She'd watched her Aunt Mary clean things with magic countless times, but it still never ceased to amaze Lily. "Will I learn how to do that?" she asked quietly.

"Yes, and much more," Hermione told the girl. "Would you like for Remus and I to explain a bit more about why we're here now?"

Lily nodded. She'd been wondering, but since crying, she'd forgotten to ask again.

"You were right in many ways, Lily. Remus and I are from the United Kingdom. I teach at a school there called Hogwarts. Have you heard of it?" Lily shook her head. "Well, it's like Salem – it's a school for magical children. Your schooling at Hogwarts lasts for seven years, beginning when you're eleven. The headmistress of Hogwarts – do you know what a headmistress is, Lily?"

"Isn't that like the principal of the school?" Lily guessed, trying to remember a story she'd read a year or two ago about a girl who was attending a boarding school in Europe.

"That's right," Hermione replied, impressed. In her studies of the American culture and how it differed from British culture, Hermione had come to realize how many words differed between the cultures, even though they both spoke English. "A headmistress is like a female principal, while a headmaster is like a male principal. Anyway, our headmistress, Professor McGonagall, sent Remus and I to come find you, Lily, because you are a very special girl. Did you know you were born in the UK?"

"I was…?"

"Yes. Your birth parents both attended Hogwarts when they were your age, and Professor McGonagall would like for you to attend Hogwarts, as well."

That sparked Lily's curiosity instantly. Someone knew about her birth parents? She'd always had an inkling that Sister Teresa at church knew more than she let on, and although her Aunt Mary had sworn she didn't know a thing about where Lily had come from, Lily suspected that wasn't entirely the case. "You know who my birth parents were? Did you know them?"

Hermione sighed softly. Sooner or later she'd known the child would have questions about her birth parents, but the little Hermione did know about their identities so far, she couldn't share – not yet, at least. No, she couldn't share that information until Lily was safe and sound at Hogwarts. "Well, Lily, I do know a bit, but I can't tell you about it; not here. Once we're at Hogwarts, then I can answer those questions. Do you feel comfortable enough to go collect your things from Mrs. Clarke's home and travel to Hogwarts?"

The strange thing was, Lily _was_ comfortable enough around Hermione and Remus to travel with them. She felt perfectly safe around the duo, and by this time knew they wouldn't do anything to harm her. However, Lily was a bright girl, and she recognized an opportunity. It was obvious that there was much Hermione was leaving out, and who knew how much she'd tell once they arrived at Hogwarts? Lily had questions, and she wanted answers _before_ they went anywhere.

"Not until you answer a couple of questions," Lily said, her voice relaying a surge of courage that she didn't really feel.

"Lily, this isn't… I can't answer your questions here," Hermione said, feeling rather uncomfortable by the sudden change in Lily's demeanor.

"Why not?"

"It isn't safe…"

Lily found herself growing annoyed. Why did everyone have to keep so many secrets from her? Why couldn't anyone just tell her the truth for once? "Why isn't it safe?" demanded Lily.

Hermione's eyes pleaded with Lily to understand. "I can't tell you that, Lily; not here."

Lily scooted out of the booth abruptly and stood, bumping into the table in the process. "Then I'm not going anywhere with you," she said in frustration. "I'll find someone else who will answer my questions!"

She turned to leave, but Remus' voice stilled her.

"Sit back down."

Lily stared at Remus. He hadn't spoken any louder than before, but there was a definite firmness in his voice that booked no room for argument. And as brave as Lily had been acting since that emotional 'slip up' as she thought of it, the tone of this man's voice put butterflies in her stomach.

When she stalled, Remus arched one eyebrow and pointed to where she'd sat less than a minute before. "Now."

Deciding it was in her best interest to listen, Lily eased back into the booth and clasped her hands in her lap, choosing to study them so she didn't have to look in Remus' eyes.

"Hermione, surely you can secure us a bit of privacy so that we can ease some of Lily's fears," Remus said in a quiet voice, though Lily heard him plain as day. She wanted to argue that she wasn't scared, but something told her that wouldn't bode well for her.

Hermione thought about it for a moment. "I suppose I could cloak our conversation for a few minutes… but any longer than that, and people might become suspicious."

"Fair enough," Remus agreed as Hermione pulled out her wand.

The sudden movement caught Lily's attention, and she looked up just in time to watch Hermione cast some sort of spell. Lily glanced around, expecting to see something different, but everything looked the same.

She couldn't help but ask. "What did you do?"

"It's a spell that keeps others from hearing a private conversation," explained Hermione. "Now, what would you like to know?"

"I…" Lily faltered, glancing at Remus, apprehension clear in her eyes.

Remus gave her an encouraging look. "Go ahead, Lily. Hermione cast that spell so that you could ask a question or two."

"I'd like to know what you know about my parents," Lily admitted in a soft voice. "And why wouldn't it be safe to talk about it here? Why did you have to cast a spell so other people couldn't hear us?"

"Well, Lily, that is a long story." Hermione paused, taking a deep breath. "Like I told you before, I don't know much about your parents, but I will share what I do know. The story begins years ago, before you were born. Just as not all people are good, not all witches and wizards are good. There was an exceptionally dark wizard in Europe back then. His name was Voldemort."

Lily had heard that name before. Her Aunt Mary had a few friends in Europe, and had inevitably heard about the evils that lurked there, and she had overheard them talking about this Voldemort one afternoon while one of these friends was visiting the States. She wasn't going to say anything about this to Hermione or Remus, though. After all, then _she_ might have to start answering questions, and Lily just wasn't in the mood for that.

"Now, Voldemort was very powerful and he had quite the following of witches and wizards who shared his views, but there were good witches and wizards dedicated to defeating Voldemort. Remus and I were a part of that group. According to the headmistress, so were your parents."

Lily thought about that. "Did… did they die fighting Voldemort?" She supposed that would be an acceptable reason for no one coming for her since she'd been adopted, even if it meant there was no chance she'd ever see them again.

Hermione shook her head. "I don't think they did, but let me continue. When you were born, we were very much in the middle of a war – the worst war the wizarding world has ever seen. From what Professor McGonagall has told me, your parents were quite gifted, and considered a major threat by Voldemort and his followers. When you were born, your mother realized that they would consider you just as much of a threat. Knowing you weren't safe in Europe, your mother hid you in the last place she thought anyone would look."

"The United States," Lily murmured.

"Yes. She took you to a church and begged them to find you a home."

"C-can we stop by there before we leave? The church, I mean? Sister Teresa might know something about my mom. She was the one who brought me to my parents… I mean, my adoptive parents." Not only that, but Lily knew she was going to miss the nun terribly. She couldn't leave without saying goodbye to Sister Teresa.

"I see no reason why we couldn't do that," said Hermione.

"So, why did you have to cast a spell so you could tell me these things?"

"Well, Lily, Voldemort is dead now, but many of his followers are still out there, and they're just as dangerous now as they were when Voldemort was alive. They are everywhere and we couldn't risk the wrong people hearing about you."

"If it's still dangerous for me, wouldn't I be safer at Salem?"

"Absolutely not. First, Hogwarts is the safest place in the wizarding world."

"And second?"

Hermione shook her head. She shouldn't have let that 'first' slip. It was plain as daylight to Hermione that Lily was quite clever; she needed to seriously think "We'll talk about that at Hogwarts."

"No, we'll talk about it here!" Lily demanded.

Remus opened his mouth to speak, but Hermione beat him to it. "No, Lily," she said firmly. "We will discuss the rest of it at Hogwarts. There are some things I will not tell you while we're sitting in a magical pub, even if our conversation is protected from eavesdroppers."

Lily slumped back in her seat with a frown. This was not going at all how she'd planned. She'd hoped to find out more information before she left the only town she'd ever known, but it didn't look like that was going to happen. Hermione and Remus were apparently rather clever themselves. No, Lily wasn't going to be able to trick them into divulging any more information… not yet. One thing was for sure, however. Whatever Hermione wasn't telling her had to be BIG.

She watched silently as Remus scooted out of the booth and offered his hand to her. "Come on. We still have your things to collect and a church to visit before we return to Hogwarts. The sooner we return to Hogwarts, the sooner we can answer more of your questions."

"You promise?" she asked, eyeing him speculatively.

"Any questions that we can answer, we will. I'm sure that Professor McGonagall will be able to answer some of your questions, as well."

Lily studied the proffered hand before slowly placing her hand in his, allowing him to pull her to her feet. They waited for Hermione to stand as well, and then, Lily's hand still in Remus', they headed to Mrs. Clarke's home to collect Lily's belongings.

o o o o o

Lily stood just inside the heavy church doors, easily spotting Sister Teresa near the altar. She took a step, but then quickly turned to look questioningly at Hermione and Remus.

Hermione squeezed her shoulder gently. "Go ahead, Lily. We'll wait here."

Nodding, Lily took a few more steps toward the nun she'd known all her life. "Sister Teresa?"

The nun turned where she was and smiled. "Lily," she said, stepping toward the girl with open arms that Lily ran straight into. "How are you, my child?"

Lily pulled back a bit so she could see Sister Teresa's face. She was really going to miss the woman. "Sister Teresa, would you tell me about my mom?"

"Clara?"

She shook her head. "My birth mom."

Taking Lily's hand, Sister Teresa led her to a pew and sat. Lily immediately followed suit.

"Your mother was beautiful, Lily," the nun admitted with a gentle smile. "Very beautiful. She looked like an angel; in fact I thought she was one, at first. But she was also very scared."

"What was she scared of?" Lily already knew what Hermione had told her, but she wondered if Sister Teresa might know anything more about it.

The smile on Sister Teresa's face grew sad, and the nun reached out to brush a strand of hair from Lily's face. "She was scared of something happening to you. She told me that you were in danger, and that she had to hide you. Your mother begged me to find you a home where you'd be safe. I could tell she planned on coming back for you as soon as it was safe."

"But she didn't. She didn't come back."

"I think she did, Lily. A few years ago, I was out of town visiting my family. When I returned, Father Flanagan told me of a young woman who came looking for a child. He didn't know of the story surrounding your adoption, so he wasn't able to help her, but his description of the woman matched what I remember of your mother."

"What did she look like?"

Sister Teresa placed a gentle hand upon Lily's clasped ones. "Wait here, and I will show you."

The nun slowly stood and made her way out of the sanctuary. Lily watched her retreat, not acknowledging when Hermione and Remus slid into the pew beside her.

"Where did she go?" Remus asked Lily quietly.

Lily shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know. She said she was going to show me what my mother looked like. Do you think she has a picture of her?"

"I don't know," he admitted. "Having an idea of why your mother brought you to the United States, it would surprise me to find out that she left a photograph of herself. The risk would be too great."

She sat there in silence, mulling over Remus' words. He was right – it wouldn't have made sense for her mother to leave a picture, especially if it increased the risk that Lily might be found by the "wrong people." But how else would Lily be able to see what her mother looked like if it wasn't a photo?

It wasn't long before Sister Teresa returned, a manila envelope in her hand. She held it out for Lily to take.

"The night your mother brought you here, I sketched a picture of her. I knew that one day you would ask about her. I was unable to use colors, but maybe it is enough for your companions to recognize her."

Hermione's eyes widened curiously. "Why do you think we might recognize her?"

Sister Teresa smiled; this time, it was a knowing smile. "Because you are like her. There is a glow surrounding you. Some might call it an 'aura' but it is more than that. Lily's mother was surrounded by a glow, as is Lily. It is why I first thought Lily's mother to be an angel. I have since come to realize what your glow really means."

"And what does it mean?"

"My niece will attend Salem in another year."

"Oh!" came Hermione's surprised response. "So you know, then."

"I know enough. Clara Wesley's sister, Mary, knew more than I did… Enough to know she needed to keep an eye on Lily here. Mary attended Salem long ago, but after she graduated she spent some time abroad. She met others like her over there, including some from a school similar to Salem.

"After John and Clara adopted Lily, Mary came to me. She wanted to know what I knew. Mary always had a knack for knowing when there was more to a story. I saw the glow surrounding her, that day we first met. When she told me who and what she was, I told her what I could – how Lily's mother wasn't from here, how she had to give her up for her safety. I knew Mary could be trusted.

"Mary went abroad again, this time searching out someone specific at that school. She didn't find him, but she did find someone she was able to talk to. Upon returning to the States, Mary became more involved in Lily's life. From then on, her priority was protecting Lily."

She watched as Lily opened the envelope and ever so gently pulled out the drawing. The ten-year-old traced her mother's face with the lightest of touches.

"She's so beautiful," murmured Lily.

Hermione glanced over at the sketch. When she took a good look at the face, she couldn't suppress the small gasp that escaped her lips. "Remus… Remus, look…"

He looked at the sketch and felt his eyes widen. "Is that…?"

"I think so," Hermione cut him of. "Sister Teresa, do you happen to remember the color of her hair?"

Sister Teresa nodded. "Yes. It was red – a bright, vivid red. She was wearing some sort of hooded cloak, so most of her hair was tucked underneath, but I caught a glimpse of a few strands."

Hermione and Remus shared a look; one that Lily didn't miss. "What?" she asked, looking back and forth between the pair. "Do you recognize my mom?"

"We need to go," Hermione said, avoiding the question.

"You _do_ recognize her!" exclaimed Lily. "I want you to tell me about her!"

Hermione placed one hand on Lily's shoulder and the other cupping her face, encouraging the girl to listen attentively. "Lily, listen to me," she said, her voice soft. "We need to get back to Hogwarts. I promise you, we'll talk about your mom once we're there, but we have to leave now. Do you understand?"

Lily nodded and stood, stepping around Hermione to hug Sister Teresa one last time. "I'm going to miss you, Sister Teresa," she whispered.

"I will miss you too, child," the nun replied, holding Lily close. "Now go. It's urgent that you get on your way." Pulling away, she offered Hermione and Remus a smile. "There is a room you can used to depart. Follow me."

She led them to the side of the sanctuary, down a narrow hallway to a small, windowless room. "No one will know you were here. Your secret will be safe." Sister Teresa glanced once more at Lily, a sad smile settling upon her face. When she turned back to Hermione and Remus, her expression was serious. "Keep her safe."

"We will," Hermione replied, taking Lily's hand. "Thank you."

Sister Teresa waved, then turned and left the room, the door closing with a soft click. She bowed her head in prayer. "Keep them safe, Father," she murmured before returning to the sanctuary.


	4. A Whole New World

Chapter 3: A Whole New World

Apparition did not impress Lily.

She'd nearly vomited on her shoes the moment her feet touched ground in Hogsmeade. As it was, she'd had to sit down for a moment to allow the queasiness to pass. Hermione had explained that it was perfectly normal to feel that way after apparating, but that didn't change the fact that Lily would never apparate again if she had her way.

The walk through Hogsmeade had been better. The fresh air lightened her nausea, and as Hermione shared a bit of the village's history, Lily gazed with interest at the numerous shops. It was her first time in a wizarding village or town, and she couldn't help feeling a little disappointed that they weren't stopping in any of the stores.

Nothing could've prepared Lily for the awe she felt as they reached the grounds of Hogwarts. The castle was HUGE, and it looked ancient. She silently soaked up everything she saw as they made their way into the castle and through the corridors. The paintings… the people were moving! She'd seen a wizard photo or two at her Aunt Mary's house, but not paintings. There were students walking in either direction in the corridors… many had greeted Hermione (Lily guessed that she was a popular or at least well-respected teacher). Lily noticed their black robes, and how different students had different colored accessories or different crests on their robes. She wasn't sure what the colors meant, but robes were obviously the dress code here at Hogwarts – at least while you were in class.

She wished she could stop and look at everything. They couldn't stop though. Hermione had explained that they had to see Professor McGonagall first. Lily still didn't quite understand the urgency. So what if her parents had fought Voldemort? It sounded as if lots of people had done the same. What was different about her parents that necessitated all of this secrecy?

They finally stopped in front of a gargoyle. When the stone statue came to life, Lily jumped.

"Password."

"Hungarian Horntail," Hermione said at once.

The wall parted down the middle, startling Lily yet again. She glanced up at Hermione, who offered her a reassuring glance.

"The headmistress' office is at the top of the staircase," she explained. "Are you ready?"

She wasn't, but Lily nodded anyway. Truth be told, she was scared. What would Professor McGonagall be like? What would she think of Lily? Would she answer any of Lily's questions? Lily could only hope that the headmistress would be even the tiniest bit nice.

As they ascended the spiral staircase, she took a few calming breaths in an attempt to calm her fears. She felt a hand settle on her shoulder, squeezing gently. Lily glanced up to catch Remus' smile. It soothed her a little.

"It's okay to feel nervous," he whispered. "It'll be all right, though."

Lily nodded and managed a small smile, just as they reached a heavy wooden door. She watched as Hermione knocked, and the door slowly opened.

They stepped inside the office to find a stern witch sitting behind a magnificent desk, her midnight hair streaked with gray and pulled back into a tight bun that added to the no-nonsense look.

"Lily. Welcome." The woman offered her a smile. Lily suspected it was an uncommon occurrence.

"Thank you," Lily murmured as she subconsciously moved closer to Hermione.

"Come sit." Professor McGonagall gestured to the chairs opposite her desk.

Lily waited for Hermione to move before shuffling toward the chairs. She sat at the same time as her companions, her stomach doing summersaults.

"How was the trip here, Lily?"

Lily glanced at Hermione, unsure of what to say. The young woman nodded encouragingly, and Lily turned to address McGonagall. "It was okay."

"Do you know where you are?"

She nodded. "Yes. I'm at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."

"Very good. And do you know who I am?"

"You're Professor McGonagall, the headmistress of Hogwarts. Hermione and Remus told me a little about Hogwarts."

Professor McGonagall smiled again, and Lily felt a little more at ease. "Wonderful. They told you then why you're here?"

"I'm a witch."

"Lily knew a fair bit already," Hermione told the headmistress. "She mentioned an Aunt Mary."

McGonagall nodded. "Mary Snyder was Clara Wesley's sister. Well, Lily. You know why you're here, but do you know why I had Hermione and Remus bring you to Hogwarts instead of letting you attend the Salem Institute of Magic?"

"Something to do with my parents… my birth parents, I mean. They went to Hogwarts, too?"

"Yes. Your mother and father both attended Hogwarts in their day."

"And they're alive?"

"Yes. Your parents are very much alive. There are several people trying to locate them as we speak."

She felt confused. Locate them…? "What do you mean? You don't know where they are?"

"Your parents are working abroad right now, and we are not in contact with them."

"What are their names?"

"We need to find your parents first, Lily. It might take a while to find them, and you're safer if you don't know everything just yet."

Lily sat there several moments, processing this new information. "If my parents might not return for a while, then where am I going to live?"

"You will stay here at Hogwarts until we find your parents." McGonagall turned to Remus. "You mentioned that Tonks and Teddy are leaving to visit Andromeda soon?"

Remus nodded. "They left this morning, actually. They'll be on holiday for a month."

"Would you be willing to stay here at Hogwarts with Lily? She needs a guardian in the interim and I believe you are the best person for the job."

"I'd be glad to... but what about… you know…?"

Lily could tell there was something Remus wasn't saying, something that Hermione and Professor McGonagall both seemed to understand. Curious as she was, she was itching to ask, but she was sure it would be rude to do so, and no doubt they'd avoid answering her question anyway.

"We'll figure out an alternative when that time comes. Thank you, Remus. Well, Lily. Now that you're safe here, do you have any questions? If I can answer them, I will."

"You said you can't tell me my parents' names yet, right?"

The elder witch nodded. "That is correct."

"But you know both of them."

"I do."

"Well… who do I look like? I always knew there was something different about me, because I didn't look like my mom or dad… I mean, my adoptive parents… Anyway, it would be nice to know who I do look like…"

McGonagall sighed. She glanced at Hermione, then at Remus, before focusing her attention on Lily. "I'm afraid I can't answer that, Lily."

"Oh." Lily slumped a bit in her chair.

Remus saw the dejected look on Lily's face, and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Why don't we go and get you settled in? You've had a long day, and it's been quite a lot to take in. Is that all right, Headmistress?"

"Certainly. We'll have plenty of time to talk later, Lily." McGonagall summoned one of the Hogwarts house elves. "Ninny, would you please show Remus and Lily to their quarters?"

"Yes, Professor McGonagall," Ninny said at once. "Master Remus and Miss Lily will follow Ninny."

"I'll talk to you later, Hermione," Remus told his companion as he stood. "Thank you, Minerva. I'll stop by later after Lily has had a chance to settle in."

McGonagall nodded. "That will be fine. Lily, we will talk more at a later time."

"Okay. Thank you, Professor McGonagall." She turned to Hermione. "Will I see you again, Hermione?"

Smiling, Hermione wrapped an arm around Lily's shoulders in a half-hug. "You can count on it, Lily."

Lily gave a smile of her own before standing. Following Remus' lead, she followed the house elf out of the headmistress' office.

Hermione watched the trio leave. Turning back around, she placed her hands in her lap as she studied McGonagall. Now that Lily was out of the room, Hermione felt confident that a few of her own questions would be answered, and some suspicions would be confirmed.

Minerva McGonagall had always been, in Hermione's opinion, a straight-forward person. She spoke the truth, with no added nonsense or embellishments. She wasn't one to beat around the bush, so it had surprised Hermione, to say the least, when she'd given the younger woman such an assignment while remaining vague about details. But Hermione was an intelligent woman, and she picked up on clues and hints when other people didn't.

"Did you encounter any problems in retrieving Lily?"

"No," Hermione replied honestly. "Does Ginny know?"

McGonagall gave Hermione a curious look, and Hermione noted that she didn't seem suspicious of the question. "Does Ginny know what?"

"That you've found her daughter."

The headmistress stared at Hermione several moments before shaking her head with the smallest hint of a smile. "It shouldn't surprise me that you figured it out. After so many years, I'm amazed that I'm ever surprised by what you know. I am curious how you figured it out though."

"The nun at the church drew a sketch of Lily's mum after she left Lily with her," Hermione explained. "The woman has a gift for sketching. It was a perfect rendition of Ginny."

One more person knew part of the secret. Considering this was Hermione, and not any other person, McGonagall was okay with this new development. She could trust Hermione with the knowledge. "What does Lily know about her?"

"She knows that Remus and I know her mother, and she knows that her mother has red hair because the nun mentioned it. Other than that I wouldn't tell Lily about her until we returned to Hogwarts. We need to answer some of her questions soon, though. Lily is extremely bright and curious, and if we don't provide the answers she seeks she'll go looking for them on her own, and I suspect she has a knack for finding trouble before it can find her. Not unlike her father, I'd think." At that, Hermione raised an eyebrow.

McGonagall shook her head, a rare smirk settling on her severe features. "Sometimes you are too smart for your own good."

Hermione laughed. "I've been told that once or twice. So I am correct then?"

"You are correct," McGonagall confirmed, and her voice took on a much more serious tone. "For obvious reasons, it is crucial that Lily not discover the identity of her parents until we can bring them back here safely. If Lily knew who they are, she might accidentally share that information with someone else. Voldemort might be gone for good, but as you well know, there are still witches and wizards out there who would love nothing more than to harm anyone associated with Harry Potter."

"I won't tell her," promised Hermione. "However, I have to ask. Did Ginny cast a charm on Lily? She looks nothing like either of them."

"It was an identity spell, which is why Ginny wasn't able to find her before. The spell masked Lily's true appearance to everyone and kept her off the radar of even Hogwarts. If it hadn't been for Mary Snyder, we might not know today what had happened to Lily." Hermione thought about what it would've been like for Lily, going to Salem as an orphan, never knowing where she really came from. It was a sad thought. "To my knowledge, two people know the counter-spell to return Lily's natural appearance. Ginny is one, and she revealed in confidence the identity of the other person."

"That's going to be a lot for Lily to process," Hermione pointed out. "It's one thing thinking you'd become an orphan, only to find out your birth parents are still very much alive. I'm sure she's wondering what things would've been like had she been raised with them instead of her adoptive parents, no matter how much she loved the Wesleys. It's another thing altogether, though, finding out that the face you've been looking at in the mirror for almost eleven years isn't really yours."

McGonagall nodded, her face solemn. "It will be a shock for her, for sure. However, just as her heritage needs to be kept secret for now, so must her true appearance. I wasn't lying when I told Lily that I didn't know whether she looks like either of her parents, but we cannot afford to take the risk of her resembling either of them greatly. Her anonymity in the wizarding world is the best way to keep her safe right now."

* * *

Ninny had led Lily and Remus through another maze of corridors (Lily wasn't sure which level of the castle they were on) to a wooden door that, upon speaking a password (lionhearted), opened to reveal a small apartment. The house elf had spoken briefly to Remus before popping out of the room.

Lily glanced around the living area, deciding that she liked this room. It had a cozy feel to it. The furniture was a dark walnut, with fabrics and hangings in neutral colors. There was a fireplace on one wall, complete with a small fire already burning. Lamps sat on either end of the sofa, which seemed to be candle-lit. Lily noticed there were no electrical cords anywhere and vaguely remembered her Aunt Mary mentioning something a few years ago about many witches and wizards not using electricity. There wasn't a television, or a computer, or even a radio anywhere in sight, but one wall was nearly covered with shelves full of books. An avid reader, Lily wondered if she'd be allowed to read any of them.

"Well," Remus said, interrupting Lily's thoughts. "What a day so far. You must feel overwhelmed."

Lily blinked and stared at Remus briefly before nodding. "Yeah."

"That's understandable. You've had a lot to process. How about we take a look around here, and then you can rest for a bit. Would you like that?"

"Yes, please," she said at once. Her eyes felt heavier the longer she stood there, and she was struggling to process everything she'd heard and seen. It had only really been a couple of hours since she'd first met Hermione and Remus, and now she was in a different city, in a different country, on a different continent. She didn't really know anyone here, and while apparently she still had parents, no one was willing to tell her anything solid about them. If not for Sister Teresa's sketch, she wouldn't even know what her mother looked like – not that Lily looked even remotely like the drawing. Did that mean she looked like her father? It was one of Lily's many unanswered questions… questions she doubted she'd receive answers to anytime soon.

One glance at Lily told Remus she wouldn't make it through a full tour. "On second thought, perhaps we'd better find your room first, and save the tour for later."

They made their way through the family room, past a small but cozy kitchen, to a short hallway. There were four doors, two on each size, all of them closed.

The first door opened to reveal a pristine bathroom, decorated in neutral shades, much like the family room. The door immediately across from the bathroom revealed a bedroom. A twin-sized four-poster sat in the center of the far wall. A small desk and a five-shelf bookcase sat on opposite walls. The linens on the bed were fluffy and white.

"Looks like this is your room," Remus noted. "Once you've settled in, we can decorate it however you'd like."

Lily could only nod.

"Here, take your shoes off and slip into bed." As he spoke, Remus walked to the side of the bed, turning down the covers for Lily. He waited patiently for her to comply, then pulled the sheet and duvet up to Lily's stomach. "Get some rest. I'll be out in the common area when you wake up."

Lily muffled the yawn that finally escaped her lips. "Thank you, Remus."

He smiled, and Lily felt comforted. "You're welcome."

Not a minute after Remus closed the door behind him, Lily was fast asleep.


	5. Rules and Hogsmeade

Chapter 4: Rules and Hogsmeade

When Lily awoke several hours later in a foreign room, it took her a moment to remember where she was. Then in an instant it all came back – Hermione and Remus… Sister Teresa… Professor McGonagall… Remembering she was at Hogwarts now, Lily relaxed slightly. Despite the major changes she'd experienced, all in less than 24 hours, Lily didn't feel as overwhelmed as she had before. Her mind had used the nap to process all this new information.

Slipping out of the bed, Lily made her way back out to the living area. True to his word, Remus was seated on the sofa, an open book in his hands.

He looked up as Lily approached and offered her a smile. "Hello, Lily. How are you feeling?"

"Better," Lily admitted with a shy smile of her own. "What time is it?"

Remus glanced at a clock on the fireplace mantle. "It's nearly seven. That would make it nearly two in Florida. Are you hungry?"

Lily was hungry, but she didn't want to be a bother. She was about to shrug her shoulders when her stomach spoke for her, rumbling.

Remus chuckled. "I guess that's a yes. Come have a seat at the table, and I'll call for Ninny."

Lily sat at the kitchen table and watched in wonder as Remus summoned the house elf. Seconds later, food appeared on the table, along with two complete place settings. Ninny bowed and disappeared.

Sitting across from Lily, Remus began to serve himself. "You can serve yourself whatever you'd like, Lily."

She put a little bit of everything on her plate – roasted chicken and potatoes, green beans, broccoli, carrots, and a dinner roll. Seeing that Remus had begun to eat, Lily wasted no time as she 'dug in.' for the first time since the accident, she ate everything on her plate.

Remus observed Lily carefully. Her appetite surprised him; he knew she'd received three full meals a day while staying with Mrs. Clarke. He was pleased to note that Lily didn't seem to be a picky eater, although he was sure the Hogwarts elves would whip up anything her heart desired.

Finishing her dinner in record time, Lily waited patiently for Remus to finish, not minding the silence. She was surprised that she still felt sleepy. Remus had said it was early afternoon back in Florida. She would still be at school if she were there. She must've napped a few hours, at least.

When Remus had finally finished his own dinner, Lily picked up her plate. "Where should I put my plate?"

"Oh, you can leave that on the table," he told her. "Ninny will take care of it. Come, let's sit in the living room and talk."

She nodded and followed Remus to the sofa, where they sat at separate ends, facing one another.

"Still tired?" he asked, and Lily found a gentle smile on his face. She nodded silently. "I thought we'd lay down some ground rules, and then you can rest if you'd like. I know it's your first day here, but the castle and surrounding grounds are vast, and I need to ensure your safety."

"Okay."

"First, I need to know where you are at all times. Students are still in classes; in-between classes the corridors can become quite crowded and the other teachers do not know you yet. For the time being, you are not to explore the castle on your own."

Lily nodded. "Yes, sir."

"Second, I expect you to always be honest with me, and with everyone else. Lying will always land you in trouble. I believe that being respectful goes without saying."

Lily nodded.

"Your bedtime will be 10:00. That means in bed and lights out. Do you have any questions about these rules?"

Lily shook her head. The rules didn't seem too different from the ones she'd grown up with. And Remus was letting her stay up a whole hour later than the Wesleys had. A small part of her wondered what would happen if she broke a rule, but she quickly decided that not knowing was preferable. "So… what happens now?" she asked.

"Well, tomorrow we'll meet with Professor McGonagall again, and you'll have a chance to meet the other teachers here. I also thought we'd go to Hogsmeade if you're feeling up to it. It's a nearby wizarding village – the village you saw from the entrance to Hogwarts, in fact. I need to pick up a few things, and thought we might pick up some things for you, as well."

"I'd like to go, please," Lily said at once. "To Hogsmeade, I mean."

"We'll go tomorrow for sure, then. Do you want to go lie down again?"

"Actually, I was wondering if… well, would it be okay if… Can I read one of those books on the wall?"

Remus glanced at the wall of books and smiled. "Sure. Go ahead and pick out whichever one you'd like."

Lily made her way over to the wall and browsed through the books. She didn't see any titles she recognized, but she found dozens that looked interesting. There were books about magic, such as A History of Magic, Common Magical Ailments and Afflictions, and a complete set of the Standard Book of Spells (Grades 1-7), and then other books that didn't outright mention magic in the title, though they sounded different, such as Tales of Beedle the Bard, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, and Quidditch Through the Ages. Lilly pulled out Beedle's book and returned to the sofa, curling up at her end.

Remus returned to his own book, quietly giving Lily some space. He glanced over at her every so often, checking to make sure she was okay, but Lily appeared to be engrossed in the book each time. Five minutes 'til ten, Remus glanced over once more to remind Lily of her approaching bedtime. He chuckled softly when he saw the open book lying in her lap, her arm lying on the arm of the sofa, her head resting on her shoulder. Carefully setting the book on the coffee table, Remus gently lifted Lily into his arms and carried her into her bedroom, settling her in bed.

* * *

The meeting with the headmistress had been brief, much to Lily's delight. Professor McGonagall had asked Lily how she was doing, if she settling in all right, and then had suggested Remus take Lily around the castle to meet the other professors. Lily had enjoyed the opportunity to see more of the castle, and had even liked meeting some of the professors. She already knew Hermione, of course, and had given the woman a hug when she saw her again. Professor Slughorn, the Potions teacher and Head of Slytherin house, had seemed very interested her story. It made her slightly uncomfortable, with his asking all sorts of questions about her parents and why she was staying at Hogwarts and whether she had learned any magic yet, but after they'd left his office, Remus had reassured her that Professor Slughorn wasn't that bad. They had even headed down to Hagrid's hut, where Lily met the Care of Magical Creatures professor. She thought Hagrid was great, like an oversized (literally!) teddy bear. She hoped she'd be allowed to visit Hagrid again.

They'd returned to their quarters for lunch, and then, as Remus had promised, they headed across the grounds toward Hogsmeade.

Lily immediately thought Hogsmeade was absolutely perfect. The village was charming, with the cottages and shops that lined the streets. She watched in amazement as witches and wizards strolled along the main road, all dressed in robes of varying colors and styles. Other than Hogwarts, Lily had never seen so many witches and wizards in one place. Remus had explained earlier that Hogsmeade was the only all-wizarding village in Great Britain, so she understood why she didn't see any muggles around.

To her right stood The Three Broomsticks. Lily couldn't tell from the outside what The Three Broomsticks was, thought it didn't appear to be a store. To her left, further back, stood a building so run down that Lily figured it must be condemned. Nobody seemed to pay it any attention as they went about their business. The fact that it stood there, that it hadn't been torn down, intrigued her.

"How long as that house been like that?"

Remus followed Lily's line of vision. "That's the shrieking shack. It's been run down for years."

"Why is it called the shrieking shack?"

"Well, some people think it's haunted. They used to say they could hear screaming and shrieking coming from the house."

Lily's eyes widened. "Do you think it's really haunted?"

He smiled, and Lily saw a gleam in his eye that left her thinking he knew more than he was letting on. "No, I do not believe the shrieking shack is haunted."

"Can we go in there?"

"Absolutely not."

"Why not?"

"It isn't safe."

"But if it's not really haunted…"

"It's still a rundown building, Lily, and I'd hate for something to cave in or collapse while we're in there. The answer is no."

Lily sighed, but she didn't push the subject. "What's The Three Broomsticks?"

"It's a pub."

She tried to think of an American equivalent. "Is that like a bar?"

"Somewhat, yes," Remus answered. "There is a bar inside, but you can find both alcoholic and nonalcoholic drinks there."

"Oh. What other places are there in Hogsmeade?"

"Well, there's Honeydukes Sweetshop, and a Weasley's Wizard Wheezes."

"Wizard… wheezes?"

"It's a joke shop."

"Oooh! Could we go in there, please?"

"Yes, I think we can stop by there before we return to Hogwarts. Perhaps we'll also stop by Honedukes and pick up a few sweets, if you behave."

Lily giggled when Remus winked. "I always behave."

"Then we'll have several places to visit, won't we? I thought we'd visit Scrivenshaft's and Gladrags first. I need to pick up some new quills and parchment at Scrivenshaft's, and we should probably get you a set or two of robes from Gladrags. You don't have to wear robes at Hogwarts right now, seeing as you're not yet a student, but you never know when they might come in handy."

"Is there a games or toy store here? There really isn't anything to do back at the castle right now except to read. I like to read, of course, but…"

Remus smiled knowingly. "You'll get bored. I understand, Lily. I was your age once. There isn't such a store here in Hogsmeade. We'll have to go to Diagon Alley for that, or perhaps we'll visit a store or two in muggle London. We can do that tomorrow, if you'd like."

Lily nodded. That sounded fair enough. "Okay."

They made their way to Scrivenshaft's, and Lily patiently waited as Remus did his shopping, looking at the quills and parchment. They looked so different from the pens and paper she was used to in the muggle world. She wondered if it felt different writing with a quill. Upon leaving the shop, Lily watched in wonder as Remus shrank his packages and tucked them into his pocket.

Their next stop was Gladrags. Lily found it interesting to stand on a stool, getting fitted for robes. Remus ended up purchasing two robes, one black and one green. He had suggested a light blue, to match her eyes, but Lily had insisted on an emerald shade of green. When asked why, she'd told Remus that it was her favorite color. It wasn't a lie – green _was_ her favorite color, but Lily didn't mention the dreams she had sometimes of a young woman with the prettiest emerald green eyes she'd ever seen.

Weasley's Wizard Wheezes was right next to Gladrags, so they stopped there next. One step in the door, and Lily thought it was perhaps the coolest shop she'd ever seen. It wasn't too terribly busy, with all Hogwarts-age kids in classes, but there were brightly colored products everywhere, some even zooming around the store. Lily read some of the labels on the products, thinking they sounded a little odd – nosebleed nougat and puking pastilles, headless hats and something called Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder. She secretly wished she could buy one of everything, just so she could test each product out and see what it did.

"Remus!" she heard a man call out, and she quickly grabbed hold of his hand as he turned to face the owner of the voice.

"Hello, Ron!" Remus greeted a tall red-haired man. "How are you?"

The man named Ron grinned. "Good, thanks. How about you? This must be Lily," he said, smiling at Lily.

"I'm doing well, thank you," Remus replied. "And yes, this is Lily Wesley. Lily, I'd like you to meet Ronald Weasley, co-owner of Weasley's Wizard Wheezes. He's Hermione's husband."

Lily smiled shyly at Ron. "It's nice to meet you, Mr. Weasley."

Ron chuckled, shaking his head. "I've been working with George for years, now, and I still haven't gotten used to being called 'Mr. Weasley.' It's good to meet you, Lily. Hermione had lots of good things to say about you. Are you looking to buy something today?"

"I don't know," Lily admitted, shrugging her shoulders. "Remus hasn't said if I could."

"Hmmm. I bet if you ask him enough, he'll cave in and let you. He acts all tough and stern, but he can be a big softy." Ron offered Lily a wink, causing her to giggle.

"Don't go giving her any ideas, Ron…"

"Hermione said you're staying at Hogwarts. Has Lily had a chance to meet anyone her age yet?"

"No. Professor McGonagall suggested getting her together with Maddy, if Bill and Fleur are amenable."

"Fleur will be glad for Maddy to have someone new to play with. Maddy's been driving her crazy since Teddy and Tonks left on holiday. Maddy's hasn't had much patience for her brother and sister lately, either. Bill won't mind, either. You should stop by Shell Cottage when you're done shopping."

"Perhaps tomorrow, if they'll be home," Remus suggested. "I told Lily we would visit Diagon Alley and maybe muggle London tomorrow, since Hogsmeade doesn't have the best selection of items to entertain young witches, and we could stop by Shell Cottage afterwards."

Ron cocked an eyebrow. "Are you saying our products aren't good, Remus?"

"Of course not. But I don't exactly want to set Lily loose in her room with a bag full of Weasley's products, if you get my drift."

The redhead laughed. "I get it. I'll tell Bill and Fleur to expect you tomorrow afternoon, then. Maddy will be excited to make a new friend. I need to get back to work, but it was good seeing you again, Remus." He smiled down at Lily. "It was nice to meet you, Lily."

"Nice to meet you too, Mr. Weasley."

Ron waved, then turned and walked through a curtain on the side of the store.

Remus turned his attention back to Lily. "Would you like to look around some more?"

She gave him a hopeful look. "Are we going to buy anything here?"

He chuckled. "Not until I can ensure that you won't accidentally blow up half the castle."

"Not even if I asked over and over and over again, like Mr. Weasley said?"

"Nope. But if you'd like to try that, we can always skip Honeydukes and head straight back to Hogwarts."

Remus had a smile on his face, but Lily knew he was being serious. "No, I'm good," she said quickly. "Can we please go to Honeydukes now?"

Stifling a laugh, Remus nodded. "Sure. Let's go."


	6. Shell Cottage

Chapter 5: Shell Cottage

"Lily, let's go!"

Lily sat on her bed, pulling her shoes on as quickly as she could. "I'm coming!" she called out, struggling with a shoelace. The moment she completed the bow, she ran out into the family room, her blonde hair bouncing in a ponytail. "I'm ready. Are we apparating or walking?" They'd apparated to London that morning, and Lily hadn't been any more impressed the second time around. Upon their return to the castle after lunch, Remus had insisted that Lily rest a bit before they depart for Bill and Fleur's house. Lily hadn't wanted to wait, but Remus refused to take 'no' for an answer, and when Lily stubbornly resisted resting, he suggested maybe the girl was too tired to visit anyone that afternoon.

She'd wasted no time in retreating to her room, where she unexpectedly dozed off for just over an hour.

"Neither," Remus replied, taking a small pot off the fireplace mantle. "We're traveling by floo."

"What's that?"

Remus opened the pot so Lily could see its contents. "This is floo powder. You throw it into the fire, step into the flames, and say the name of a place within the floo network."

"The fire doesn't burn you?"

"Not if you use floo powder. Now, we're going to Shell Cottage today. You'll have to say the words clearly, or you'll end up somewhere you didn't mean to go. Here, take a handful of floo powder. I want you to go first."

"But… what if I go to the wrong place?"

"Then I'll know immediately and I'll come find you. Go on now, take some floo powder."

Lily took a handful and hesitantly threw it into the flames. They turned an emerald green. "Whoa," Lily gasped.

"Now step into the flames, and say the name of where you want to go," instructed Remus.

Lily stepped into the flames and, as clearly as she could, said, "Shell Cottage."

She felt herself swirling with the flames until she fell out of another fireplace onto a wooden floor.

"Are you Lily?" asked a voice from her left. It sounded like a girl, maybe her age.

A hand reached down to help Lily up. "Give her a moment, Maddy," a red-haired man said as he smiled down at Lily. Lily could tell he had been extremely handsome at one time, though his face was scarred. "Is Remus coming shortly?"

As if to answer his question, Remus stepped out of the floo, dusting off his robes. "Hello, Bill," he greeted the younger man, reaching out to shake his hand.

"Hello, Remus. This must be Lily, then."

"Yes. Lily, this is Bill Weasley and his elder daughter, Madeleine, who prefers to be called Maddy."

Lily smiled shyly. "It's nice to meet you, Mr. Weasley and Maddy."

Bill smiled in return. Lily liked the warmth in his eyes. "You can call me Uncle Bill, Lily."

"Bill, I'm not sure Professor McGonagall wants…"

"I'm sorry, Remus, but I am not having my niece call me Mr. Weasley."

"You're really my uncle?" Lily asked.

"I am."

"So that makes us cousins then!" Maddy exclaimed. "I'm ten, but I'll be eleven in July. How old are you?"

"Ten…" Lily stammered. "Uncle Bill, are you my uncle on my mom's side or on my dad's side?"

"We'll talk about your parents, Lily, but unfortunately now is not the time. Maddy, why don't you and Lily go play in your room for a bit?"

"Dad, can Lily and I go flying?"

"No," Remus answered quickly. "Lily hasn't flown before."

"Like on a broom?" Lily asked. "Can't I try?"

Remus shook his head. "Not without adult supervision."

"You could supervise us then."

"Not right now."

"But Remus…"

"Lily, the answer is no."

Lily frowned. She was about to argue further when Maddy grabbed her hand and gave it a light tug. "Come on! I just got a new wizard card last week. Do you collect them?"

"No…" Lily trailed off, wondering what wizard cards were. She allowed Maddy to pull her up the stairs to her bedroom. A twin-sized bed, covered in red and gold, sat in one corner. There was a poster on the wall of people with brooms. Lily, having looked at a book about quidditch the night before, figured it was a quidditch team. There was another poster of a couple of teenage wizards that reminded Lily of a boy band she liked back in the States. Like the portraits at Hogwarts, the people in the posters were moving.

Maddy pulled out a shoebox and set it on her bed. "Here," she said, sitting and lifting the lid off the box. Lily slowly sat opposite Maddy, peering into the box with mild interest.

There were dozens of pentagon shaped cards, each with a photo of a witch or wizard on the front. Maddy took the top card, which featured a wizard with greasy dark hair and a hooked nose.

"This is Snape," Maddy explained. "His card just came out last month. It's lucky I got one so soon."

"Who is he?"

"He was the headmaster of Hogwarts for, like, a year during the war. But he's really famous because he's the 'Most Brilliant Potions Master of the Century,' at least according to the Daily Prophet."

Lily had no idea what a potions master or the Daily Prophet were, but she was more interested in the war Maddy had mentioned. "What war?"

"The war against Voldemort. He was a really bad wizard – the worst there ever was. Snape was a spy for the Order of the Phoenix, a group of witches and wizards who fought Voldemort."

"Like Remus, Hermione, and my parents," added Lily.

"Your parents were in the Order?" Maddy asked, impressed.

"I don't know. Hermione only said they'd fought Voldemort."

"If Aunt Hermione says that, then they must have. Aunt Hermione knows, like, _everything_."

"So, Hermione's husband… he's your dad's brother?"

"Yeah, Uncle Ron is the youngest brother. There are six brothers and one sister. Dad is the eldest. Next is Uncle Charlie. Then Uncle Percy, then the twins, Uncle Fred and Uncle George. Uncle Fred died in the war. After that, there's Uncle Ron. Aunt Ginny is the youngest."

"What about your mom's side?"

"Mama has one sister, Aunt Gabrielle. She's a lot younger than Mama."

"So, my mom or dad must be a Weasley, then."

Maddy shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know. I mean, Uncle Ron and Aunt Hermione have Rosie and Hugo, and I have a brother and a sister – Sebastien and Emme. But no one else has kids yet. Uncle Percy just married Aunt Audrey last year, and Uncle George has a girlfriend. Aunt Ginny has been married to Uncle Harry for years, but she hasn't had any kids since then."

"And your Aunt Gabrielle?"

"She's not married, but she's too young to have a ten-year-old. Besides, Mama or Grandmere or Grandpere would have known if Aunt Gabrielle had a baby…"

Lily sighed in frustration. "I wish they'd tell me who my parents are. Professor McGonagall said they're working abroad, and she knows them both, but she can't even tell me who I look like. How does any of this make sense?"

"I don't know…" A sly grin spread across Maddy's face. "We could try to find out something. I bet Lupin and Dad are talking right now."

"And…?"

Maddy held up something flesh colored. "It's an extendable ear. We can use it to hear what they're saying."

"Won't we get caught?"

"Nah. Mama took Sebastien and Emme out for the afternoon. Dad and Lupin are the only ones here besides us."

Lily knew it wasn't right to eavesdrop, but she'd been desperate for even a hint of information about her family since she'd met Remus and Hermione, and it seemed no one was willing to offer up anything. Maddy seemed to think this 'extendable ear' thing would work well, and she obviously had no qualms about eavesdropping.

Her mind made up, Lily followed her cousin back out into the hallway. They crept toward the other end, where they conveniently found themselves just above the entrance to the kitchen. Lily could already hear muffled voices, but as Maddy carefully lowered the magical device so that it hung by the closed door, the voices grew clearer.

"What does she know?"

Eyes wide, Lily met Maddy's excited gaze. They certainly weren't wasting any time in talking about her!

"Not much, and she's not happy about it. Are you sure it was a good idea to tell her you're her uncle?"

"I couldn't have her call me 'Mr. Weasley,' Remus. It would've felt wrong. Besides, she needs a blood link in this world – a person she knows she's tied to."

"She's a clever girl. I'm worried she'll figure out who her parents are before we can get them back here."

"This family is big enough that it shouldn't be a problem."

"She has a sketch of her mother, Bill."

Both men were silent for several long seconds, and Lily realized how important Sister Teresa's picture of her mother was. She wondered if maybe there was a picture of her mother somewhere in Shell Cottage.

"How did she get that?" Bill finally asked, drawing Lily back out of her thoughts.

"The nun at the church she was taken to ten years ago drew it. It's fairly accurate. If she sees a photograph, I have no doubt in my mind that she'll recognize her."

"We'll just have to make sure that doesn't happen."

Lily scowled. Yet another person was determined to keep her in the dark. It wasn't fair. She was tempted to tiptoe around right then and there and look at every picture possible, but if she was caught they'd know that she knew something. She'd have to be more covert about it.

"So I have to say, I'm surprised Lily doesn't look like either of her parents."

"Well… That's not exactly true."

"What do you mean? Neither of them has blonde hair or blue eyes… and I don't see either of them in her facial features."

"That crosses out Mama's family," Maddy whispered. "Mama and Aunt Gabrielle both have blonde hair. You _have_ to be a Weasley, somehow…"

"It's a spell."

Lily and Maddy looked at one another once again. Maddy's expression conveyed excitement at the turn of events; Lily's conveyed confusion. What did Bill mean about a spell?

Apparently, Remus was also confused. "What?"

"She wanted to make sure Lily was as safe as possible from Voldemort and his death eaters," Bill explained. "She cast a spell on Lily to mask her appearance."

"A spell that's lasted a decade?" Remus asked skeptically.

"It was complex. There's a counter spell to return Lily's natural appearance."

"So who does she really look like?"

"She had her father's eyes and a full head of red hair. Beyond that, it was hard to tell who she favored. She was only weeks old when I saw her."

"Weasley-red?"

"Surprisingly enough, no. It was a darker red. I have a photograph."

They heard Remus' quick intake of air. "You do?"

"She had to have one photo of Lily before she took her to the States. Let me go get it."

They heard a chair push away from the table and footsteps approaching the door. Maddy hurriedly pulled back the extendable ear. "Hide!" she whispered.

Lily tiptoed toward Maddy's room, but froze when she heard Maddy let out a squeak.

"What's wrong?" Lily whispered.

"It fell…" Maddy explained. "Hurry, let's get back to – "

"Maddy, come here please."

Maddy put a finger to her lips and pointed to the bedroom door, silently telling Lily to go in there. 'Go,' she mouthed.

Lily responded with a questioning look.

"Madeleine."

"Yes, dad?" Maddy called out.

"Come downstairs, and bring Lily with you."

"Dad, we were about to play a game of – "

"Madeline Victoire, do not make me ask you again."

Maddy sighed. "Come on. Let me do all the talking."

The girls headed down to the sitting room, where Bill and Remus were waiting. Bill had the extendable ear in his hand. He held it up for Maddy to see.

"Anything you care to tell me about this?"

Lily studied Bill's face. He didn't seem overly upset. Certainly not angry, though his voice was firm. She wondered how much trouble they'd be in if he knew the truth.

"That's one of Uncle George's extendable ears." If Maddy was concerned at all, Lily couldn't hear it in her voice. Quite the opposite actually, as she thought Maddy sounded rather innocent.

"What was it doing on the sitting room floor?"

Maddy shrugged. "Maybe Emme or Sebastien left – "

Bill frowned, and for the first time Lily heard a stern note to his voice. "Do I need to remind you of the consequences of lying in this family, Maddy?"

She sighed. "No."

"I'll ask again; what was the extendable ear doing on the floor in here?"

"We were playing with it." It was the truth… just not the _whole_ truth.

"Playing? Or eavesdropping on Remus' and my conversation?"

So he did know. "Uh…"

Lily took a step forward, saving Maddy from thinking up another half-truth. Hopefully Bill and Remus wouldn't be too cross with them. "We were curious. I'm sorry."

Remus frowned. "How much did you hear, Lily?"

"A bit."

"What exactly did you hear?"

Lily could feel herself getting angry, and she didn't think it would do them any good for her to lose her temper. She wanted to get out of that room and away from Bill and Remus before she said something to land herself in trouble. "I'm sorry were listening. Can Maddy and I please go back upstairs now?"

"Lily."

"I want to go back upstairs," she said with a little less patience. She was trying really hard to be polite, but she could feel the frustration growing inside her body. If she didn't get away from them soon, she was sure she was going to snap.

"Lily, please talk to me."

"Is that even my name?" Lily finally demanded.

He stared at her, momentarily stunned into silence. "What?" Remus asked when he finally regained his speech.

"Is my name really Lily? Because apparently this isn't my face, or my hair, or my skin…"

Remus sighed. "I'm sorry you heard…"

Lily didn't give him the chance to finish. Cutting him off, she turned to Bill. "What do I really look like?"

"Lily, you have to understand, it isn't safe to reverse the spell until your parents return."

"Why isn't it safe?" she all but shouted, her voice taking on a shrill tone. She felt the tears threatening to fall – yet another sign of her pent-up anger. She was beyond worrying about her tone getting her into trouble. At that point, she didn't care whether or not she was being respectful. "How is it I'm not safe with anyone other than my parents? Are they that much more powerful than everyone else?"

"Lily…"

"I want to know who I am, damn it!"

Any other time, Lily would've been worried about what Remus and Bill were going to say about her language, but she was so angry she didn't even realize the room was shaking, or that she was shaking along with it.

It took her a moment to realize that Remus, Bill, and Maddy were all suddenly staring at her like she'd grown a second head. She began to feel quite self-conscious.

"I'm sorry," she murmured, the frustration leaving her body as quickly as it had grown. "I shouldn't have yelled… or said that…"

Maddy seemed to recover her voice first, and a grin slowly spread from ear to ear. "Merlin's beard!" she exclaimed. "How did you do that?"

"How did I do what?"

"You made yourself look different!" The ten-year-old turned to her father. "Dad is this what Lily really looks like? She looks just like – "

"Maddy," Bill cut her off softly.

"But Dad, doesn't she look like – "

"Madeleine, hush," he said, this time in a tone that booked no room for argument.

Lily's hands made their way up to her face, feeling her cheeks, her nose. They felt a little different, somehow. "What do I look like?"

"How did this happen?" Remus asked Bill. "You didn't perform the counter spell, did you?"

"I didn't have anything to do with this. It appears to be a case of accidental magic. I didn't expect though that accidental magic could… I think it would be best if we got Lily back to Hogwarts immediately. Professor McGonagall should be informed of this new development."

"I want to see what I look like," Lily told them.

"At Hogwarts," Remus told her. "After we meet with Professor McGonagall, we'll head back to our quarters, and you can see what you really look like."

"And you'll finally tell me who I look like?"

Remus hesitated, but after what seemed like an eternity to Lily he nodded. "Yes. At that time, I will tell you who you look like."

* * *

"How did this happen?" Professor McGonagall asked, her question mirroring Remus' earlier one, as they sat in her office. Bill and Maddy were there in addition to Remus and Lily.

"We believe it was a case of accidental magic," Bill explained. "Lily overheard a conversation Remus and I had and became frustrated when she realized that her mom had cast a spell on her as a baby to disguise her appearance. She wanted to know what she really looked like, and understandably became angry when I wouldn't divulge that information. Not realizing what she was doing, I think she reversed the spell herself."

"Do you believe this to be Lily's true appearance?"

"Her hair and eyes are the same as I remember."

"She's the spitting image of her," Professor McGonagall remarked. "It'll be important for Lily to remain at Hogwarts now, until her parents return. The students aren't likely to recognize her face, but the staff certainly will, and likewise will many other witches and wizards outside of Hogwarts who are old enough to remember."

"Understandably," Remus replied. "If Bill agrees, we'll arrange for Lily and Maddy to spend time together here. I think they are on their way to becoming close friends; they seem to have found a penchant for mischief together already," he told her, arching an eyebrow at the girls, who had the decency to blush slightly.

"That sounds like a fine idea. I will let the staff know about this new development, so they aren't taken by surprise if they see Lily in the halls."

"If there's nothing else, headmistress, I'd like to take Lily back to our quarters. She hasn't had the chance to see the change in her appearance yet, and I promised her the opportunity once we were finished here."

"Of course. Lily has had quite the eventful afternoon already; I'm sure she'd like the opportunity to rest. We'll speak later." Professor McGonagall turned to Lily and offered a hint of a smile. "I must say, Lily, your mother named you well."


	7. Crimson and Emerald

Chapter 6: Crimson and Emerald

Lily stared at her reflection in the hall mirror. Her nose was a bit smaller, her cheeks just a hint fuller. The change in her face's shape was slight, but she could still tell everything that was different. She had a sprinkling of freckles on her nose and cheeks now, and her skin was fairer. Her previously blonde hair was the same length, but fuller now and dark red – somewhere between a shade of crimson and a rich mahogany. Her eyes were now almond-shaped, instead of round, and a bright emerald.

"What did Professor McGonagall mean?" she asked Remus, who was watching her from the sofa.

"When?" Remus replied curiously.

"When she said my mom named me well. What did she mean?"

Remus patted the cushion beside him, and Lily, glancing at her reflection once more, went to sit. "I believe your mother named you after your grandmother. Her name was Lily, too. Professor McGonagall said that your mother named you well because you look just like your grandmother."

"I do?"

"I knew your grandmother when she was just a girl, and when I look at you, it's like I'm looking at her."

"Is she my mom's mom or my dad's mom?"

"Lily, you know it's not a good idea – "

"I'll find out anyway, you know," Lily reminded him. "Professor McGonagall admitted that the other teachers would know who I look like. Even Maddy seemed to know. Uncle Bill just wouldn't let her finish telling me there, but if I asked her privately I know she'd tell me. You might as well tell me."

Remus narrowed his eyes slightly, but he couldn't deny she had a point. Even if everyone else remained tight-lipped, Maddy wasn't known for keeping secrets well. He wasn't sure that Lily had realized this yet, but it didn't change the fact that she would likely find out the truth from Maddy. "You're entirely too clever for your own good, Lily."

She smiled. "Who do I get that from?"

"I imagine you get that from both of your parents, though I have to tell you you're channeling Hermione quite well at the moment."

She briefly wondered what Remus meant by that, but she wouldn't allow herself to become distracted. "Well? Whose mom is she?"

He sighed. "Your dad's mom."

Lily digested that new bit of information. Her father's mother was named Lily. She didn't know her grandmother's maiden or married name, but it was a start. She could easily ask Maddy the next time she saw her. "What about my dad's dad? What was his name?"

"Oh, no you don't," Remus said with a shake of his head. "We are not continuing this conversation any further."

"But Remus…" she tried.

"No, Lily. The less you know about your parents right now, the better. When they return to Britain, then they'll be able to tell you more."

A huff escaped Lily's lips as she stood suddenly and took a step back, crossing her arms in front of her chest. She caught Remus' raised eyebrow, but it didn't cool her temper. "That's not fair."

"Life isn't always fair, Lily," Remus explained in a calm voice, though she picked up the underlying firmness in his tone. "The adults in your life will make decisions based on what they feel is in your best interest, and you won't always like those decisions. Pouting won't change that fact. Now, if you would like, you can come sit down and read. Or, if you're feeling tired you can go lie down a bit before Maddy comes for dinner."

"I don't want to read or take a nap," she said, irritated that Remus had suggested she take a nap like a two-year-old. It was one thing when she'd first arrived at Hogwarts a few days ago and was adjusting to the time change and life change, but she was mad already over not being told everything she wanted to be told, and the suggestion had only added fuel to the fire. "I want to know about my parents! I want to know about my grandparents! It's not fair!"

"That's enough."

This time there was no mistaking the stern rebuke. If she hadn't been so worked up, it would've snapped Lily out of her fit immediately. Instead, she stamped her foot on the floor.

Standing, Remus closed the distance between them in a few quick steps. For the first time, Lily felt a bit apprehensive, but Remus merely put a hand on her shoulder. "I think some quiet time to rest and perhaps sleep a bit is an excellent idea. Let's go." Putting just a smidgen of pressure on her shoulder, he began to guide her to her bedroom.

Lily took maybe five steps before planting her feet, refusing to walk further. "No! I don't want to take a nap like some toddler!"

"Then you may spend the time reflecting on your behavior, which at this moment is more fitting of a toddler than an almost eleven-year-old. Either way, you are going to spend some time in your room."

He began to guide her once again, but Lily held fast, stomping her foot angrily. "I. Am. Not. Going!"

Remus' free hand wrapped around Lily's upper arm in a firm grip. Before Lily could process this, the hand that had been on her shoulder landed a hard smack on her backside. Lily let out a small shriek, both from the sudden sting in her posterior and the shock. Just as quickly, Remus brought that hand to grasp Lily's other arm, and he leaned down so they were face to face.

"That is _enough_, young lady," he said in a tone that booked no room for argument. "You are being disrespectful, and this tantrum ends now. One more stomp, one more shout, one more disrespectful word out of you, and I will pull you across my knees for a proper spanking. Do you understand?"

Lily nodded, stunned silent. He hadn't raised his voice a bit – in fact, it had taken on a lower tone that put butterflies in her stomach, but she had no doubt in her mind that he would follow through if she continued.

"I'd like a verbal response, please."

"Yes, sir," she murmured.

"Into your room, please."

She shuffled her feet as she walked into her room. Taking her favorite stuffed animal from home off the bed (though she'd never admit to anyone else that she had one), she curled up on her side, hugging the plush animal to her as the tears began to spill.

Remus didn't spend much time watching her from the doorway before making his way over to the bed, where he sat on the edge. Wiping the tears from her eyes with the pad of his thumb, he moved his hand to her back.

"Shhh," he soothed, rubbing large circles on Lily's back as she cried. "I know you're overwhelmed," he told her in an understanding voice. "You've had a lot to process over the last few weeks, between losing your adoptive parents, moving to a new country, and learning to live with someone new. To top it off, you want to know more about your birth family and nobody will seem to tell you anything. Anyone would be frustrated in your shoes. It wouldn't be babyish in the least if you were to sleep for an hour or two. I think you'll feel better afterwards.

The cries gradually began to subside, and after about ten minutes, the sniffles had quieted. Remus watched Lily's closed eyes and listened to her deep, even breathing a few moments more, just to be sure she was asleep, before standing. He brushed her hair out of her eyes before retreating from her room, closing the door behind him with care.

* * *

When Lily emerged from her room nearly two hours later, she didn't see Remus at first. It was odd, because even in a few short days, she'd grown accustomed to seeing him whenever she came from her room. Glancing down the hall, she wondered if maybe Remus was in his own room. She knew it was the room adjacent to the bathroom, but the door was closed, and she wasn't sure whether it would be all right to knock. She stood there in the hallway, watching the door and debating in her mind whether or not to go knock on the door for several minutes before the door opened and Remus walked out.

"Hello, Lily," he said, offering her a gentle smile. "Did you need me? If my door is closed, just knock."

She nodded halfheartedly. "Remus?"

"Yes?"

"I… I'm sorry!" Lily rushed out. "I'm really sorry about how I behaved earlier."

Remus smiled and held his arms out to Lily, who ran into them without hesitation. He wrapped his arms around her, one hand stroking her head. "I know you are. All's forgiven."

"Is… um… Maddy still… uh… coming over…?" she asked once he'd released her. She managed to look up at him, but bit her lip nervously as she wrung her hands a bit.

"That depends," Remus said, looking serious. "Are you feeling better now?"

Lily nodded her head. "Yes."

"Then I see no reason why Maddy can't still come over. Why don't you read for a little while? Bill said he'd send Maddy by floo at six."

Determined not to get into any more trouble any time soon, Lily headed over to the bookshelves, pulled out Quidditch Through the Ages and headed to the oversized chair, curling up and opening the book.

* * *

"Did Remus tell you anything?"

Lily and Maddy were sitting cross-legged on Lily's bed, a brand-new wizard chess set on the bed between them. After dinner, Remus had allowed the girls to go into Lily's bedroom and 'hang out' as Maddy had put it. Maddy had been teaching Lily how to play the game. Lily wasn't half-bad, though it was harder with a new set of chess pieces, as they tended to contradict most of Lily's moves, and Maddy had ultimately won the game.

"He said that I looked my grandmother, and that her name was Lily, too," Lily told her cousin in a voice just above a whisper, not wanting to alert Remus to the fact that they were talking about Lily's family. "He wouldn't tell me anything else."

"Lily… I didn't realize her name was Lily," admitted Maddy.

"What _do_ you know about her?"

Maddy frowned and shook her head. "I… can't say."

"What do you mean?"

"Dad told me not to. If I say anything, and he finds out, I'll be in huge trouble." She looked miserable. "I'm so sorry, Lily. I want to tell you, I really do."

Lily sighed. "It's okay. I don't want you to get into trouble. I guess it'll just have to wait."

"Do you want to play another game of wizard chess?"

"Nah… I just wish there was a way…" Lily trailed off, her eyes widening in excitement. "Oh my gosh, I've got it!"

"You've got what?" Maddy asked, confused.

"Your grandmother – Uncle Bill's mom, I mean. What's her name?"

"Molly Weasley. It used to be Prewett, before she married Granddad. Why?"

Slipping off the bed, Lily pulled out the drawer of her small nightstand and withdrew a piece of paper. "Remus already told me that Lily was my dad's mom. My dad couldn't have been a Weasley, or at least, he couldn't have been one of Uncle Bill's brothers." She hugged the picture close to her. "I have the sketch Remus was telling Uncle Bill about earlier… the one of my mom."

Maddy's eyes lit up with excitement. "Can I see it?"

Slowly, Lily turned the sketch around so that Maddy could see it. If possible, Maddy's eyes widened further, and she clasped a hand over her mouth just in time to muffle her squeal. "Merlin's fuzzy beard!" she exclaimed in a whisper once she'd gotten control of herself. "That's Aunt Ginny!"

"Are you sure?"

"Positive! She's the only sister, and there aren't any other girls in the family who look like her."

"So I really am a Weasley, in a way…" A plethora of feelings rushed over Lily as she digested her latest discovery. She knew who her mom was, thanks to Sister Teresa and Maddy. Bill really _was_ her uncle, which meant that the man she'd met yesterday – Ron Weasley – was also her uncle. She didn't understand why Remus, Bill, and everyone else had fought so hard to keep this from her. What was the big deal about her mom being Ginny Weasley?

"Now we've just got to figure out your dad," Maddy said, interrupting Lily's thoughts. "Like I said before, Aunt Ginny is married to Uncle Harry, but they haven't been married more than five or six years. I remember being the flower girl at their wedding."

"What's his last name?"

"Potter. He's kind of famous, at least in this part of Europe. He killed Voldemort."

"Really?" Lily asked in awe.

"Yeah. You wouldn't know it, talking to him, and no one in the family treats him like he's famous. But any time we go out with Aunt Ginny and Uncle Harry, other witches and wizards are all excited to see him."

"So he's probably not…"

Lily didn't get to finish her sentence, as a knock on the bedroom door interrupted her. Eyes wide, she stared at Maddy and put a finger over her lips before tucking the sketch back into the drawer. Only when the drawer was closed and Lily was reseated on the bed did she say, "Come in!"

The door opened and Remus stuck his head in. "It's time for Maddy to go home."

"Okay," Lily said, hopping off the bed as Maddy did the same. She shared a private smile with Maddy before they skipped past Remus out the door.

He followed them into the family room, eyeing them suspiciously. "What exactly have you girls been up to tonight?"

"Maddy taught me how to play wizard chess," Lily admitted truthfully. "I'm not that great yet, but one of these days I'll beat her!"

"In your dreams!" Maddy laughed. She took a handful of floo powder. "I'll see you later, Lily!"

Tossing the powder into the flames, she said, "Shell Cottage," and stepped in. Lily waved as Maddy disappeared into the Floo Network.

"Remus, is Maddy coming back tomorrow?"

He chuckled. "It's a definite possibility. Right now, though, it's a bath and bed for you."

"Okay!" chirped Lily, and she all but skipped off to the bathroom without another word, leaving Remus curious about her shift in mood.


	8. A New Discovery

**Quick note: **It should be apparent already, but I have strayed a bit from cannon. Obviously, Remus and Tonks survived to raise Teddy. Lily was born while the war was still going on, and for the purposes of this story the war didn't end so soon. It took a few more months, at least. There is one other character who perished in the war who I might decide to have survive instead. I want to use that character, but we'll have to see! Also, I've taken the liberty with Bill and Fleur's children – I used the canon names as their middle names, and unlike canon Victoire who was born on the anniversary of the Battle of Hogwarts, I had Maddy's birth date in July 1998, just before the end of the war in my story.

Also, in case anyone is curious, I have not consulted a calendar to determine when exactly the full moon occurred this particular year in the story. The accuracy of that isn't important for the purposes of this story.

Enjoy, and if you feel inspired to do so, please let me know what you liked (or didn't like) about this chapter!

* * *

Chapter 7: A New Discovery

Over the next few weeks, Lily settled into a routine with Remus. While he hadn't taken her off of Hogwarts grounds, Lily got the impression he was trying hard to keep her entertained. Maddy came over nearly every day – the girls were quickly becoming the best of friends. To Remus' surprise, they'd managed to stay out of trouble despite their mischievous natures when together.

In truth, Lily and Maddy had spent much of their time attempting to identify Lily's birth father. Since confirming Ginny as Lily's mother, they hadn't been able to learn anything else. Lily hadn't been able to talk to any of the staff other than Hagrid, and to her dismay, he hadn't offered up any information.

Just the day before, Lily and Maddy had been visiting with Hagrid in his hut. They enjoyed their visits with the half-giant. He always made them tea and rock cakes, although they frequently turned down the rock cakes (on account of them resembling rocks more than cakes).

That day, Lily had decided it was worth trying to see if Hagrid could shed any new light on the mystery.

"Hagrid?" she asked him after taking a sip of her tea.

"Yeah?"

"You know my mom and dad don't you?"

Hagrid shook his head a bit. "Not fer sure," he told her honestly. "There's no denyin' who yeh look like, but as fer yehr mum an' dad… I don' righ'ly know, Lily."

She thought about that for a moment. "What about my grandma Lily, then?"

"Oh, no yeh don'," Hagrid said quickly. "Lupin told me yeh aren' ter know abou' tha'. There's a reason yeh haven' bin told abou' yer grandma an' granddad an' yeh need ter jus' drop it!"

Lily plastered a sad look on her face and pulled out the puppy dog eyes. "Please, Hagrid?"

"No, an' tha's the end o' it! Yeh'd be wise ter drop it before I get a mind ter tell Lupin what yeh've bin askin'!"

Lily had let out a frustrated huff after that, but she'd wisely dropped the subject. She didn't figure it'd turn out well if Remus heard about her attempts. Unfortunately, that left her in the same place she'd started, with no knowledge of her father's identity, other than the first name of his mother.

Today, Lily and Maddy were sitting out on the grassy lawn in front of the main castle entrance, enjoying the breezy June afternoon. Remus had allowed them out on the castle grounds, provided they stayed in front of the castle or went to Hagrid's. The duo had opted to remain in front of the castle, happy about the opportunity to just sit and enjoy the weather.

"There has to be a way to figure out who your dad is," Maddy said, frustration evident in her voice. Even though it wasn't her own parents they were trying to learn about, Maddy was just as interested in discovering the truth as Lily was. In Maddy's case, it was more of the fact that when presented with a mystery, she felt compelled to solve it. That, and all of the adults were so hell-bent on keeping Lily's parents' identities a secret.

Lily sighed softly. "I wish I knew. Are you sure it's not your Uncle Harry?"

"I'm not sure at all," admitted Maddy. "I only know how long they've been married. I don't think Aunt Ginny was married before Uncle Harry. People don't really get divorced in the Weasley family and I haven't heard about anyone dying. When's your birthday?"

"June 12."

"You were born in 1998, right?"

"Yes," Lily said, unsure of where Maddy was going with this.

"Aunt Ginny's birthday is in August, and she'll be 28 this year. She had to have been sixteen when you were born! She would've still been at Hogwarts, so I don't think she would've been married to anyone then anyway. We'll have to find out if she had a boyfriend back then… Maybe he's your dad."

"Maybe," agreed Lily.

Maddy sat there in silence for a few moments, which struck Lily as odd considering how much her cousin talked. All of a sudden, she blurted out, "Blimey, your birthday is a little more than a week away. What are you going to do for your birthday?"

"I don't know," Lily said with a shrug of her shoulders. "I'm not sure Remus even knows it's going to be my birthday."

"You have to tell him, then! You can't turn eleven without someone celebrating it. Eleven is the second biggest birthday you can have as a witch, your seventeenth being the first."

"Why the seventeenth?"

"That's when you're considered an adult, and you can do magic outside of Hogwarts without getting into trouble. So, what do you _want_ to do for your birthday?"

Again she shrugged her shoulders. "I hadn't really thought about it. I'm not sure I really want anything, anyway."

It wasn't the truth, but Lily wasn't going to reveal what she _really_ wanted for her birthday. She was sure she'd get all emotional and start crying.

"We'll have to talk to Dad. He'll talk to Lupin about it. Hey, Dad said that you're coming to spend the night at our place tomorrow."

Lily nodded. "Remus told me. It's odd, because before he was going on and on about how I couldn't leave Hogwarts until my parents come back, and now I'm leaving overnight tomorrow."

"Maybe he decided just to let up a bit?"

"I don't think that's it. Yesterday morning and this morning, he left me at Hagrid's for a couple of hours while he went to do something. I had to wait there for him to come and get me – I couldn't go back to our quarters on my own. He said he just needed to run errands and that because of the circumstances, I couldn't come with him, but I think it's more than that. He's looking kind of tired today."

"Hmm. Well, I'm not going to ask Dad more about you coming over. Wouldn't want them to change their minds and say no. We're going to have so much fun!"

The redhead smiled. "I'm looking forward to it too. Are there a lot of pictures of my mom and your Uncle Harry there?"

"A couple, maybe. There are more at the Burrow. That's where Grandma and Granddad Weasley live. Of course, there are some at Aunt Ginny and Uncle Harry's house. I bet there are pictures of Uncle Harry's family there, too. I haven't ever met any of them, and I don't know their names."

"Shame we can't visit there."

A sly smile spread across Maddy's face. "Maybe we can."

"How?" Lily asked, confused. "There's no way Uncle Bill is going to take us there, and there wouldn't be anyone there anyway, right?"

"We can sneak over there after everyone's in bed. I know the name of their house to get there by Floo."

"Won't somebody hear us?"

"Mama and Dad sleep through just about anything. Come on, it's a great idea! There's bound to be pictures there, and some way to figure things out. What do you say?"

Lily wasn't sure. She wanted to find out more, but Remus wasn't going to be happy if they got caught, not to mention Uncle Bill… After her tantrum a few weeks ago, Lily had a fairly good idea how Remus would handle any rule-breaking on her part. Was it worth the risk?

Then she remembered how no one would tell her anything else, and she decided then and there that it would be worth it if she found something.

"I'm in," Lily told her cousin.

* * *

The following afternoon, Remus escorted Lily to Shell Cottage, her backpack filled with everything she'd need for an overnight stay. Lily had noticed that he seemed even more tired, but she didn't think it would be polite to point it out. She couldn't help but feel excited. She'd never been one to break the rules, but then again, before tonight she hadn't felt a need to break any rules. But it was a good plan, as far as she could tell. Maddy had seemed confident, and Lily desperately wanted to know more about her parents, whether or not the adults in her life approved.

This time, they were greeted by Maddy's mother Fleur upon exiting the Floo. Lily was immediately pulled into a hug. "It is good to finally meet you, Lily!" Lily heard a rather pronounced French accent in the woman's voice, but it didn't surprise her. Maddy had already told her before that her mother was from France and that, while she spoke English quite well, the accent had remained. "I am your Aunt Fleur. Bill and Maddy have told me so much about you." Her aunt finally let go of her, and Lily smiled politely.

"It's nice to meet you, Aunt Fleur."

"Maddy…" Fleur called up to the second floor. "Lily's here…"

A bedroom door burst open, and Maddy practically flew down the stairs. "Hi Lily!" she exclaimed. "Let's go up to my room!"

"Hold on there," Remus said, raising a hand to signal them to stop. "Just a moment, please. Come here, Lily."

Lily walked over to Remus and looked up to meet his gaze. "Yes?"

"I want to remind you that I expect you to behave for Bill and Fleur while you're here. You follow their directions and their rules, in addition to my rules. Is that clear?"

"Yes, Remus," she replied promptly.

"This should go without saying, particularly since they are your uncle and aunt, but if you misbehave for them they are perfectly within bounds to discipline you accordingly. I won't be pleased if I hear you've caused any mischief while you're here."

"I understand."

"Good. Be a good girl, Lily, and I'll see you tomorrow." Remus leaned down to press a kiss to Lily's forehead before bidding Bill and Fleur goodbye and stepping back into the Floo.

"Dad, can we go up to my room now?" Maddy asked the moment Remus had disappeared.

"Yes."

Grabbing Lily's hand, Maddy raced back up to her room, Lily fighting to keep up.

* * *

That night, Maddy and Lily dutifully donned their pajamas and climbed into bed. Bill had transfigured a spare chair into a second twin-bed for Lily. Tucked under the covers, they allowed both Bill and Fleur to wish them a good night (Bill reminded them not to stay up _too_ late), and waited for the door to close behind them before they dared speak.

"How long do you think it'll take them to go to bed?" Lily whispered.

"They'll go to bed in an hour, maybe," Maddy whispered back. "They should fall asleep soon after. Listen… Lily, are you sure you want to do this?"

Lily shot Maddy a curious look. "Are you having second thoughts?"

"Not a chance. But you heard Lupin – if we get caught, we'll be in big trouble with Dad. Mama usually leaves all the punishment stuff to him."

"What do you think your dad will do?"

"There's no thinking. I _know_ what he'll do."

"And…?"

"He'll spank us, Lily. That's what he'd do to me if he caught me out of bed in the middle of the night, sneaking off somewhere outside the house, and I'm pretty sure he'd do the same to you."

Lily shrugged, though with the room dark it was hard for Maddy to see it. "Remus would probably do the same to me. I'm not entirely sure he won't do it anyway, even if Uncle Bill has already punished us. But I can't stand not knowing. It's not fair that they're keeping all these secrets. It's my life. They're _my_ parents. I deserve to know who they are, whether they're back from wherever they've gone or not. I'll take my chances with Uncle Bill and Remus."

"Brilliant," Maddy whispered, and Lily could hear the excitement in her voice.

They waited nearly two hours, an hour after they heard Bill and Fleur retire to their own room, before Maddy whispered that it was time. The girls slipped silently out of their beds and tiptoed out of the room and down the stairs. Maddy lifted the pot of Floo powder from the mantle without a sound, and opened it so she could each grab a handful. "Now, the Floo Network name for their house is 'Serenity House,'" Maddy explained in a hushed voice. "Make sure you say the words clearly. We'll go together, so that we don't lose each other by accident. Ready?"

Lily nodded, and Maddy threw the powder into the flames. They stepped in together, Maddy nodded, and then, in sync, they said, "Serenity House."

Moments later, they fell out of the fireplace into a dark room. Maddy clapped once, and several candles lit all on their own. "Aunt Ginny spelled them so they would do that if a blood relative claps," explained Maddy. "It makes it easier on us, considering we don't have our own wands."

"So where should we look?" Lily wondered aloud. "You'll have to decide, since I don't know where anything is here."

Maddy nodded toward an archway. "Let's look in the sitting room first."

They walked into the other room, less careful here about being quiet since they knew they were the only ones there. Maddy gave Lily a gentle elbow nudge, and this time, Lily clapped, smiling broadly when the candles came to life. They split up, walking slowly around the room as they examined different pictures displayed on the shelves and tables. Lily was examining a photograph of nine red-headed people, three of whom Lily recognized as her mother, her uncle Ron, and her uncle Bill, when she heard Maddy's gasp.

"I found her!"

Lily hurried over to see what Maddy had discovered, and she found herself staring at a picture of a woman who looked like an older version of herself. She had an arm around a man with untidy black hair and glasses. There was a baby on her hip, less than a year but old enough to be able to wave clumsily. The baby had the man's untidy black hair and the woman's striking green eyes. All three were smiling, and the man would occasionally lean over to kiss the woman's cheek and the baby's head.

She didn't know who the other two people were, but Lily knew without a doubt that she was looking at her grandmother Lily as a young woman.

"That has to be Lily," she told Maddy. "But I don't know who the other people are."

"Well, I don't know about the man," Maddy said, "but that baby looks an awful lot like Uncle Harry. He has untidy black hair, too – in fact, he looks almost just like the man, except his eyes… He has _her_ eyes." She pointed to the Lily in the photo.

"Do you think it's him? Your uncle Harry, I mean?"

"It might be. I wish there were names somewhere around so we'd know for sure. If the baby in the picture is Uncle Harry, and the woman is your Grandma Lily, then that would make Uncle Harry your dad…"

It was almost too good to be true. Had she finally figured out her father's identity? "How can we know for sure?"

Maddy thought on that. "Well, I could ask someone what his parents' names were. I bet I could get Uncle Ron to tell me. He wouldn't have any idea the real reason why I'd ask, so he'd probably answer my questions without any suspicion." Maddy glanced at the grandfather clock in the corner. "We'd better go. The quicker we get back, the less chance we have of someone noticing we were gone."

Lily wholeheartedly agreed, and glanced once more at the photo before following Maddy back into the main room, clapping her hands just before exiting the sitting room to put out the lights. Once in front of the fireplace, Maddy had a small fire going.

"How are we going to put that out once we leave?" Lily asked worriedly as Maddy clapped her hands to put out the candles on the walls. "What if something happens and everything catches fire?"

Maddy shook her head. "It's a special log, charmed to burn only as long as you need it to use the Floo. Once you leave the fireplace and head into the Floo network, the fire goes out on its own. Don't worry, it'll be fine. Do you have the Floo powder?"

Lily held out her arm, a fistful of powder in her hand. "Got it."

"Throw it in, and on the count of three, say Shell Cottage."

She threw the powder into the fire, and the girls stepped in.

"One… two… three…"

"Shell Cottage!" they said in unison, and were sucked into the Floo network as they zoomed back to Maddy's house.

They managed to land in the sitting room of Shell Cottage with a bit more grace than they had arriving at Serenity House. Lily looked down and brushed the soot off of her pajama pants, but was instantly distracted by her cousin's soft, worried utterance.

"Uh oh."


	9. Double Trouble

Chapter 8: Double Trouble

Lily's eyes shot up and widened in horror. Sitting on the sofa, feet away from them, was Bill Weasley, and he didn't look happy.

"Where have you two been?" he asked them in a low voice that made Lily feel quite nervous.

"Uh… hi, Dad…" Maddy stammered out.

Bill stood and strode over to the girls, his arms folded in front of his chest. "Have you _any_ idea how worried I was when I went to check in on you and _neither_ of you were in your beds? When I searched every inch of this house, and I still couldn't find you? Where. Have. You. Been?"

"Serenity House," Maddy mumbled.

"You're telling me that the two of you Floo'd over to a house where no one was even home? Am I hearing you correctly, Madeleine Victoire?"

Maddy cringed a little. Bill wasn't yelling, he typically didn't, but there was no doubt in Maddy's mind about the trouble they were in. "Yes, sir…"

"And just what were you doing at your aunt and uncle's house in the middle of the night, when they aren't home?"

"We were trying to figure out who my dad is," Lily answered for her cousin, feeling rather nervous herself.

That seemed to take Bill by surprise, because he stared at them for a minute, his face less severe. "Why would you be looking there for information on your dad, Lily?"

"She's my mom, isn't she?" Lily responded with a question of her own. "Your sister, Ginny, I mean. She's my mother."

"How on earth did you find out?"

Lily rubbed the corners of her eyes, her lack of sleep catching up with her. "Sister Teresa's drawing. I showed it to Maddy. She said it looked just like her aunt Ginny."

Bill was almost afraid to ask. "Did you find anything?"

She nodded. "A picture of a woman who looks just like me, with a man with messy dark hair and a baby with the man's hair and the woman's eyes. That woman is my grandma, Lily, isn't she?"

"You have a lot of questions, and it appears that Remus and I are going to have to sit down tomorrow afternoon and discuss this." Bill frowned, and Lily instantly disliked the stern demeanor that had returned. "Whether you wanted information on your family or not, however, you and Maddy had absolutely no business leaving this house in the middle of the night and going to an empty house where there was no supervision, nor did you have any business using the Floo network without an adult. Anything could've happened to you two, and no one would have known."

She hadn't considered the possibility that their sneaking out might worry anyone, and the thought of it filled Lily's stomach with a dreadful guilt. "I'm sorry," Lily said in a quiet voice.

"I'm sorry, too, Dad," Maddy added.

"Maddy, go wait for me in your room, please," he told her. "Lily, you and I are going to have a chat in my study."

Maddy's eyes widened. "But Dad…"

"Now, Madeleine."

Offering Lily what she hoped was an apologetic look, Maddy shuffled her feet over to the stairs and up toward her room, moving as if in a funeral procession.

Lily didn't say anything as she followed Bill through a door to a small office. The expression on Maddy's face had confirmed Lily's suspicions about what was about to happen. She knew they'd be in trouble if caught; she'd even known what _kind_ of trouble they'd likely be in. However, faced with an angry and worried uncle, Lily didn't feel so brave.

Bill closed the door behind them and pulled out his wand, waving it wordlessly at the door. He then set the wand on his desk and leaned against the edge. "You knew you'd be in trouble if you got caught, didn't you, Lily?"

"Yes, sir," she murmured. "I didn't mean to worry you. I just wanted to know who my parents are. Everyone seems to know about my parents except me…"

She heard him sigh, and it made her feel guiltier. "I can't imagine what you've been through in the past month, but sometimes you have to trust the adults in your life, even if you don't like their decisions. You put yourself in danger tonight; no matter the reason that is unacceptable, young lady."

"I'm sorry, Uncle Bill."

"I'm glad to hear that, Lily. You know there are still consequences, though."

Lily nodded, tears pooling in her eyes already. The quiet disappointment in his voice was worse than if he had yelled and screamed.

He wasn't sure how she was going to react when he put her over his knees, or if she even realized that he was about to spank her. He would've felt a bit better knowing how she'd been raised over in the states. Had she ever been spanked? If Remus had been the one to catch the girls, Bill had no doubt that the elder man would've given them a smacking to remember – both of them. It wouldn't be fair to spank Maddy and not discipline Lily in the same manner, and besides, he mused, he _was_ her uncle. If she had pulled such a stunt and she'd been living with her parents, Ginny would've expected him to treat Lily the same as he did Maddy (and then would've warmed her backside again at home for getting into trouble with her uncle, period). Gathering his resolve, Bill pulled out the desk chair and sat, patting his lap. "Come, Lily, let's get this over with."

She sniffled, but walked over to Bill's side without complaint. Not a word did she utter as he gently put her across his lap, nor did she fight him when he tugged her pajama bottoms down to her knees, though a small but surprised gasp did escape her lips. She was going to take this spanking without a fuss. Sure, she was probably going to cry. She usually did in such a situation. What she wasn't going to do was try to get off his lap or yell and scream. She had acknowledged it as an acceptable risk before she and Maddy had left Shell Cottage, after all.

Even so, the first swat caught her by surprise. Lily wasn't sure why she'd expected Bill not to swat as hard as Remus had, or her adoptive parents, for that matter, but she was sorely mistaken in that expectation. His hand fell once again on her bottom, and a tear slid down her cheek. _'Ow, ow, ow!'_ she thought. She wasn't going to fuss, though… She bit her lip to keep from saying anything.

Bill didn't lecture as he continued to smack her backside. Lily was secretly glad. The swats were bad enough without listening to his disappointed voice. As it was, she couldn't hold back anymore, and was now clutching fistfuls of Bill's robe and crying softly.

Four swats landed on her sit spots, and while her cries grew louder, she managed not to yell out. Then, amazingly, it was over. She felt him pull her pajama pants back up (which didn't feel all that great) before he reached under her arms and lifted her off of his lap. Standing her in front of him, he gently grasped her shoulders and looked her straight in the eyes.

"If you ever do something this foolish again, Lily, I will make this spanking feel like a few taps. Do you understand me?"

Her face a mess from the tears and a runny nose, she nodded fervently. "Yes, sir,"

Bill pulled a handkerchief from his robe pocket and wiped her face. Then he pulled her into his arms, rubbing her back as she cried it out, mumbling apologies here and there.

"Shh, I know you're sorry," he told her in a gentle voice. "All is forgiven. Come now; let's get you tucked in bed. You need to get to sleep, and I need to have a talk with Maddy."

"Uncle Bill?"

"Yes, Lily?"

She pulled away a little so she could look at him. "Please don't spank Maddy. She did it to help me, so I'm the one at fault, not her."

He smiled softly. "That's not how it works, Lily. Maddy is able to make her own choices, and she chose to do something she knew wasn't allowed or safe. She is just as much to blame. Now, it's time for bed." Bill stood and took Lily's hand, leading her back up to Maddy's bedroom. It didn't surprise him to find his elder daughter sitting on her bed, chewing on her fingernails. "Go on," he told Lily, "In bed with you."

Lily climbed under the covers, settling on her belly and smiling a little when Bill leaned over to press a kiss on her forehead. "I know you're tired, so don't fight it, sweetie. Maddy will be back up in a few minutes."

Straightening, he crooked his finger at the other ten-year-old and waited for her to slowly slide off of her bed and shuffle toward him before leading her down to his study.

She was exhausted, but Lily refused to allow sleep to claim her before Maddy returned. Time had felt a little skewed while she was in Bill's office, so she really wasn't sure how long it had taken, or how long it would likely take Maddy to come back.

Her backside was sore, to be sure, but she knew it would fade by morning. Of course, depending on how Remus reacted to the news of her mischief when he came to pick her up the following day, she might very well have a sore bottom again by that evening. The possibility of a second spanking was not something Lily was looking forward to.

It seemed like an eternity passed before Maddy returned, still sniffling. Lily was barely awake, the darkness of the room not particularly conducive to anything but sleep, but she managed to hold on as she listened to Bill tuck Maddy in. Once he had finally closed the door behind him, she dared to whisper.

"Maddy? You okay?"

"Uh huh…" Maddy whispered back. "You?"

"Yeah. I'm sorry I dragged you into it, just so I could find out about my parents. It was selfish of me to get you into trouble like that."

"Oh, come off of it. It was my idea to go to Aunt Ginny's in the first place, and I'm glad we went. I'm convinced that baby was Uncle Harry, and you know what? Since he's famous, he has to be in a book or two about the wizarding world and its history. We can find him in a book and I bet it would mention his parents. Best of all, we wouldn't have to ask anyone else."

"Where would we find a book?"

"Hogwarts would be the best place. Aunt Hermione probably has some history books but she's too clever and she'd know right away we were up to something. Aren't there a lot of books in that flat you and Remus are living in at Hogwarts?"

"Yeah… You think there might be one there?"

"There's bound to be. You'd just have to look without Remus getting suspicious."

"Fat chance of that happening," Lily sighed. "Uncle Bill will surely tell him everything tomorrow afternoon, if he doesn't make me do it."

"We'll figure something out." Maddy sounded so sure of herself that Lily found it hard not to believe her.

"We'd better get to sleep before Uncle Bill comes in and gets upset with us for talking."

"I wouldn't put it past him to swat us a few more times. Good night, Lily.

Lily yawned. "G'night, Maddy."

She closed her eyes, and within seconds she was fast asleep.

* * *

Lily pushed her food around on her plate, her appetite gone. She'd been fine at breakfast, but she knew Remus was due to arrive sometime after lunch, and so her lunch was much less appealing with the nerves of what Remus would say or do when he found out. It was the fact that she hadn't been in this kind of trouble with him before, really, that had her so anxious. Would he be mad? Disappointed? Would he yell a lot? She didn't know. Her only experience with making him upset was when she'd thrown that little tantrum a few days after she'd arrived. He'd been patient then, and when he did get firm he still kept his voice down. Would it be that way this time?

Glancing at his niece, Bill frowned. She hadn't taken more than a few bites. "Lily, eat please," he said in a calm yet firm voice. While she wasn't going to waste away from not eating, he figured she'd be a better frame of mind with a fuller belly when Remus did arrive.

She sighed. "I'm not hungry. May I please be excused?"

Bill took another look at her plate. "Five more bites, please."

It took Lily several minutes to force the bites down. The moment she swallowed the fifth one, she looked at Bill expectantly.

"All right, you may be excused. Please take your plate to the sink first."

Lily obediently took her plate (utensils and cup, too) to the sink. "Uncle Bill, is it okay if I go outside? Just to the swing?"

He nodded. "If you promise not to leave the garden."

"I promise." She headed outside and made her way through the garden to a double-seated swing that stood in the shade of a large tree. Lily sat in the middle of the swing and began to bend and straighten her legs, propelling the swing forward and back slowly.

She sat there, swinging in a leisurely manner, just watching the waves on the beach below. So wrapped up in her thoughts, she didn't notice anyone else outside until she felt added weight on the right side of the swing. Looking over, she saw Remus sitting next to her.

Lily didn't feel she was ready to face him, but she knew it was only proper to greet him anyway. "Hi, Remus."

He smiled at her as if Bill hadn't told him anything yet. "Hi, sweetheart," he told her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. "Did you have a good time with Maddy last night?"

"Sort of," she told him honestly.

"Just sort of?"

Might as well be honest, she thought to herself. "Well, Maddy and I did something we weren't supposed to do and got into trouble for it."

"And what did you and Maddy do that you shouldn't have?"

"Before I tell you… are you going to yell?"

"Let me ask something before I answer that," Remus countered. "What did your uncle Bill do about it?"

A little embarrassed, Lily had to look away. "Gave me a spanking," she whispered.

"I see," he said slowly. "Sounds like whatever you and Maddy did was quite serious."

She could only nod.

"I promise not to yell, but that doesn't mean I'm any less upset. So let's hear it, Lily. What did you and Maddy do?"

"We snuck out after Uncle Bill and Aunt Fleur went to bed and took the Floo to Serenity House."

"You _what_?"

Lily flinched at his sharp tone. "You said you wouldn't yell."

"That was not yelling, young lady. What were you and Maddy thinking by messing with the Floo and trying to go somewhere else in the middle of the night? And while we're at it, why in Merlin's name were you at Serenity House?"

She shrugged her shoulders.

"No. I expect more of an explanation than a shrug of your shoulders, Lily."

"I wanted to know who my parents were, since no one else would tell me," she blurted out, figuring he'd find out soon enough. "I figured out who my mom is. Turns out all I had to do was show Sister Teresa's drawing to Maddy. She said it looks _just_ like her aunt Ginny. We weren't sure who my dad was, though, since she said that my mom hasn't been married to Harry Potter for that long, so we went to Serenity House to try to find out. I found a picture there of a man, woman, and baby, and the woman looks _just like me_." Lily was aware that she wasn't talking in the most respectful manner, and that her voice was probably louder than it needed to be, but it felt good to release some of her frustration. Despite the trouble she was in, she was angry with Remus, Bill, and every other adult who had tried to keep her from knowing about her family. "Maddy thought the baby looked like her uncle Harry. He's my dad, isn't he?" she practically demanded.

Remus watched her silently, just long enough for her to squirm a little. "I see we're going to need a change of plans," he said firmly. "I'll talk to Bill, and I think that when we get back to Hogwarts a meeting with the headmistress is in order. We'll see what she says about it. It won't do not to tell you anything if you're going to put yourself in harm's way trying to find out the answers to your questions. Do _not_, however, misunderstand the fact that you are in a _lot_ of trouble, young lady. I am very disappointed in your behavior."

"I'm sorry," mumbled Lily, half mad still and half ashamed.

"Seeing as how Bill already spanked you, I'm going to give you a choice, Lily. The first option is to be on restriction for the rest of the day and all of tomorrow. I think kids these days call it being 'grounded.' You will stay in your room the entire time, other than meals and to use the loo. Maddy will not be allowed over during your restriction."

Lily didn't like the sound of that at all. "And the second option?" she asked quietly.

"You and I can go up to Maddy's room for some privacy and you will get a spanking for getting into trouble with Bill and for putting yourself in harm's way."

Not a great choice, she thought. She abhorred the idea of another spanking, but spending a day and a half in her room with practically nothing to do sounded like pure misery. Actually, she kind of thought she'd rather have a sore bum than be restricted to her room.

"I'll take the second option," she told him, absentmindedly playing with a strand of her own hair.

He nodded. "Let's go then."

The walk up to Maddy's room took far less time than Lily would've liked. She was at least glad that Maddy wasn't in there, so she didn't have to look at her cousin's face and admit that she was about to get her bottom smacked again. Remus made quick work of closing the door and soundproofing the room. Then he sat on the edge of the bed Lily had slept in and motioned Lily over to him.

He stood her between his knees and unfastened the button of her pants. She began to protest, but one look from him stilled her. He positioned her over his knee, letting her torso rest on the bed. Once he had her adjusted, he tugged down her pants and panties in one fluid motion.

Lily groaned when she felt a cool breeze on her bottom. "Remus…" she whined.

"Any time you do something dangerous, Lily, you can expect a bare bottom spanking. A sore bum is much better than getting hurt or worse, and no one knowing where to find you."

Remus didn't have anything more to say. Instead, he landed ten fast, hard swats, causing Lily to burst into tears almost immediately. He put more force into the swats than he would have any other time, but he wanted to get this over with quickly. It was more about making an impression on Lily that hopefully she would remember the next time she thought of doing something foolish and dangerous.

He let her lay there crying for a moment, his hand rubbing her back, and when she'd calmed down some he replaced her clothes and stood her up. He didn't feel the need to lecture her. He'd lectured enough already, and was sure that Bill had done so as well the previous night. Instead, he pulled her to him for a comforting hug.

"I'm sorry," she told him again, this time in a softer tone.

"I know you are. It's over and done with, and we won't talk about it anymore, other than when we speak with Professor McGonagall about what you've figured out." Remus kissed the top of her head. "Now, you and Maddy are welcome to play together, so long as the two of you stay out of trouble. Bill and I need to talk, and I expect you not to try to eavesdrop on our conversation. Is that clear?"

She nodded her understanding. "Yes, sir. I'm not grounded?"

"No. It's over and done with, remember? Come on now, let's go downstairs so you can find Maddy."


	10. News and Preparations

Note: I'm going ahead and posting this chapter now, despite the fact I haven't begun on the next one. Please take a moment and let me know what you think of it.

* * *

Chapter 9: News and Preparations

"I don't think we're going to be able to keep her in the dark much longer."

Remus sighed, rubbing his face tiredly. It had been a rough night, and having to deal with Lily's misbehavior upon returning had only drained him further. "I agree. Despite the consequences, I don't think she's going to stop until she gets straight answers. I understand that naturally she's at risk from the death eaters who were never caught, being Harry's daughter and all, but I'm not sure I understand why Minerva is so adamant about Lily not knowing. Did she say anything further to you about it?"

"Professor McGonagall and I spoke before you and Hermione had gone to get Lily," Bill admitted. "She didn't share all of the details, but she believes that Lily is a special girl, and suspects that she going to be an extraordinarily powerful witch as she matures… more powerful than her parents. She did share that Lily's birth has much to do with this, though she didn't explain how. We've seen what she can do in a fit of accidental magic. Ginny was careful with the spell; no one should have been able to reverse it without the counter spell. Simply put, if the wrong people find out about her, and about her potential, Professor McGonagall fears they'll either kidnap her, and try to mold her into a dark wizard, or kill her."

"I can see where she would be concerned about that," conceded Remus. "The fact remains that Lily seems to have Harry's penchant for mischief, Ginny's temper, and Hermione's cleverness. It's a volatile combination."

"I have to say I agree with you there. Are you going to speak with Professor McGonagall about it?"

"Yes. Lily and I are headed to her office in an hour. I told Lily that it's the headmistress' decision what Lily is allowed to be told, so we would have to see what she says about the matter at hand."

Bill nodded. It sounded like a good idea. "Lily seemed a bit subdued as she and Maddy headed back up to Maddy's room," he mentioned, slightly changing the subject. "I take it she wasn't pleased with having to relay news of last night's activities to you."

"Actually, she was surprisingly forthcoming about what had happened," replied Remus. "She wasn't so thrilled with being in trouble for it."

"She didn't put up a fight at all last night, Remus. Frankly, it shocked me, because Maddy does everything she can to get out of a smacking, no matter how much she knows she's earned it. Kicking, pleading, trying to wiggle away… Lily didn't so much as utter a peep in protest. I was concerned about disciplining her that way in the first place, not having any knowledge of what the Wesleys had done while raising her or how you've been dealing with her behavior."

The elder man chuckled a little. "She wasn't so accepting earlier when I took her up to Maddy's room for a quick chat. I'm glad that you treated Lily the same as you did Maddy, though; and I wouldn't worry about it. Lily knew better than to do what they did, and I'm pretty sure she had some idea of what to expect. Hopefully it will keep her out of trouble long enough for Minerva to relent a bit and allow us to tell her more, or better yet, for Harry and Ginny to return. Have you heard from either of them lately?"

"No, but I honestly don't expect to. They were traveling for the Ministry, and apparently they were not permitted to share any details of their trip. They said prior to leaving that they'd send word as soon as they were on their way home. The moment I hear anything, I'll be sure to let you know."

"Thank you."

"You're looking rather tired," Bill noted. "Rough full moon?"

Remus smiled wryly. "They're all rough. Not the worst I've had, by far. I have been fortunate to have procured the wolfsbane potion every month in the days leading up to the full moon, so I'm able to maintain my head. The transformations are exhausting, though."

"Where have you been getting the potion? Not a lot of potions masters are willing to brew that potion, even for the right price."

"An old colleague," was all Remus was willing to say on the matter.

* * *

Lily had been in the headmistress' office on more than one occasion, but it still made her nervous. The people in the portraits on the walls all seemed to be watching her. She didn't care for so many eyes to be on her.

"Lily." She met Professor McGonagall's gaze when the stern witch said her name in a tone she well recognized. "I hear you've been getting into some mischief, looking for information about your parents."

Lily blushed under McGonagall's sharp gaze. "Yes, ma'am," she said in a soft voice, suddenly wishing she could just shrink into the chair."

"And what have you learned about them?"

She glanced at Remus uncertainly. When he gave her a slight head nod, she addressed McGonagall. "My mother's name is Ginny Weasley. I knew I was a Weasley somehow because Uncle Bill is my uncle and Maddy's my cousin, but Maddy knew that my mom couldn't be her mama's sister Gabrielle because she's much too young. I look like my dad's mom and I'm named after her, and Uncle Bill's mom's name is Molly so my dad couldn't be a Weasley. That meant that my mom must be a Weasley. That and the drawing of my mom looks just like her. Anyway, she's married to Harry Potter. They haven't been married long, but I think he's my father anyway. They were both teenagers when I was born. He supposedly has dark hair and green eyes like mine, and there's a picture of a man with messy black hair, a woman who looks like me, and a baby with dark hair and green eyes at Serenity House. That woman has to be my Grandma Lily and the baby could be Harry Potter. That would make him my dad if it is him in the picture."

McGonagall could not deny that she was impressed. "It seems you've been quite busy."

"Yes, ma'am."

"What did Bill and Remus have to say about your trip to Serenity House?"

"They weren't happy… I got in a lot of trouble."

"Did 'getting into trouble' convince you not to go running off in the middle of the night?"

"Yes," Lily answered, "but I'm not going to stop looking. Not until I know more about my mom and dad."

"Lily…" admonished Remus.

"It's all right," McGonagall assured him. "She's being honest. All right, Lily. If I tell you what I know about your parents, you must give me your word that you will stay at Hogwarts until they return. That means that despite what else you might want to learn, you will not leave Hogwarts to do it. There will be no sneaking around within the castle in the middle of the night, either. I can assure you that should you decide to try such a thing, there are several people who patrol the halls nightly and you will be found out." She paused as she let Lily think about this. "Do I have your word?"

"I promise I'll stay at Hogwarts and I won't go sneaking around."

"Very well. You are correct, Lily. Ginny Weasley is your mother, and Harry Potter is your father. Your father's mother was named Lily, as well. When you were born, the wizarding world was in the middle of a terrible war. Your father, who was famous for having survived as a baby when Voldemort had tried to kill him, was leading the fight against Voldemort. Voldemort had an army of followers, known as death eaters, and they were a terrible group of dark wizards and witches.

"It was a dark time, Lily. People were dying every day, and you didn't always know who you could trust because these dark wizards could make themselves look like someone else. Your mother knew that if any of Voldemort's followers found out about you, you would have been in grave danger. She did the only thing she could think of to keep you safe – she masked your appearance and took you to a separate continent – somewhere no death eater or Voldemort would think to look, and found someone who could find you a home."

"Where are they now?"

"That I cannot tell you, Lily. They are on a trip for the Ministry of Magic, and I do not know their whereabouts, nor do I know what they are doing for the Ministry."

"What about my grandparents?"

"Your mother's parents are Arthur and Molly Weasley. Your father's parents were James and Lily Potter."

"Were?" Lily repeated, catching the different word. "Are they dead?"

She noted that the headmistress seemed sad suddenly. "Yes, Lily. They died many years ago, before you were born."

"Were they very old?"

"No, my dear. Your paternal grandparents died when your father was just a baby. They were very young."

"Then how did they die?"

"I'm not sure that's something that you need to know at the age of ten."

"You said you would tell me what you knew," Lily reminded her, "and I can tell you know what happened to them."

"That's enough," Remus rebuked her quietly. "You're not being very polite or respectful, Lily. If there's something that Professor McGonagall feels you are too young to hear, you are going to respect that. Right now, it is not important for you to know how your grandparents died. You wanted to know about your parents, so let's keep your questions focused on them, please."

She did have something else she'd been wondering… more like worrying… about, but she wasn't sure if she was ready to ask. While she was excited to find out that her birth parents were alive, she also felt hurt. It hurt knowing they'd been alive all this time, and they'd never found her. They'd never brought her back to live with them. She didn't care what Sister Teresa had said about her mother coming back once. They were magic; they should have been able to find her! She couldn't help wonder if they even really wanted her.

An overwhelming sadness washed over her, one that she had kept mostly at bay until now, and it left her not feeling much like asking any more questions. "I… I'm sorry, Professor McGonagall," she said softly. "I'm done." Lily turned to Remus. "May I go to my room now, please?"

The change in her demeanor took Remus by surprise. "What?"

"Can we please go back? I want to go to my room."

This wasn't like her at all, and he knew it. It worried him a bit. "Lily, what's wrong?"

She shook her head. "I want to go to my room."

"Please talk to me, Lily. What's going on?"

"I don't want to talk…" she told him, a tear slipping down her cheek against her will. "I just want to go to my room. Please…"

Remus wasn't sure what to do. Clearly something was troubling her, though for the life of him he couldn't figure out what. He hadn't yelled or raised his voice with her. In fact, he'd been quite gentle in reminding her that the headmistress had her reasons for not telling her everything. It didn't make sense that she would've become emotional at that.

He looked to McGonagall for a clue as to what to do.

"That's all right," she told Lily, her voice uncharacteristically soft. "We can talk later if you have more questions."

At a complete and utter loss, Remus took Lily back to their quarters. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders as they walked, and while she didn't pull away, she didn't lean into the embrace, either. This troubled Remus, who had come to know Lily as being rather affectionate.

The moment they stepped through the door, Lily slipped away from him and made a beeline for her bedroom. She didn't close the door behind her as she kicked off her shoes and climbed onto her bed, curling up on her side with her plush bear crushed to her chest and closing her eyes.

Perhaps a minute had passed when she felt the mattress dip beside her. She figured it was Remus, but she didn't want to open her eyes. She could feel the tears pooling as it was, and if he saw them fall he'd just ask more questions.

A hand rubbed her back gently, and she fought not to cry. "I wish you would talk to me, Lily," she heard him say. "I can tell that something is bothering you, but I don't know what it is, and I can't help you if I don't know. Was it something I said back in Professor McGonagall's office?"

"No," she mumbled, though she didn't open her eyes.

"Then what, sweetheart?"

"Nothing," she lied. "I'm just tired."

Remus knew it was a lie, but he didn't feel now was the time to reprimand her for not being truthful. It wouldn't do either of them any good. "You're going to be turning 11 next week," he said, changing the subject. "Are you excited?"

Lily shrugged one shoulder.

"We should of course celebrate. What would you like to do?"

She wiped the moisture from her eyes before opening them a crack. "I don't know."

"We could have a birthday dinner. I can ask Professor McGonagall later if it would be okay for us to celebrate at Shell Cottage, since it is a special occasion. Bill, Fleur, Maddy, Emme, and Sebastien would be there, of course. We could have Hermione and her family over, too. Do you think you might enjoy that?"

Another shrug.

"Well, think about it, all right? We've got a bit of time to plan. I'll let you rest now, but if you feel like talking, I'm here, okay?"

Lily nodded, knowing it would appease him though she had no intention of voicing her concerns. He leaned over and kissed her forehead before turning to leave.

She put out the light beside her bed, closed her eyes once more, and drifted off into a restless sleep.

* * *

Professor McGonagall had approved Remus' plan without objections the following day, agreeing with the ex-teacher that Lily needed a cheerful birthday celebration, and that it was less likely to work out in their quarters at Hogwarts. The students hadn't left for the summer yet, so Remus and Lily didn't have free reign of the castle or its grounds. Their quarters, while cozy, were a bit small for a party, and they didn't offer much in the way of activities and space to keep the kids busy.

A party was scheduled for the afternoon of June 12 at Shell Cottage. Besides Bill and Fleur's brood, Hermione would be there with Ron (who still had no idea Lily was his niece) and their children, Rose and Hugo. Hagrid had also agreed to come, as it just so happened the twelfth fell on a Friday this year and he didn't have any afternoon classes on Fridays. Remus had wanted to invite the rest of Lily's family on her mother's side – it didn't seem right that Lily's own grandparents, who were a Floo call away, couldn't be a part of her birthday celebration, but they didn't know about Lily yet and Professor McGonagall had wanted to keep as few people in the loop as possible still.

Lily hadn't shown nearly as much interest as Remus would've expected from a girl her age, but he figured she still had something on her mind. He did his best to give her the space she needed and not pry too much, though from time to time he did ask her if there was anything she wanted or needed to talk about. She always said no, and he knew it wasn't the truth, but he always left it at that. Eventually the truth would come spilling out, when she was ready to share it.

When he wasn't asking her how she was doing, Remus was asking Lily all sorts of questions about her interests. He wanted to make sure the party was tailored to her as much as possible. He'd remembered from their first trip to Hogsmeade that green was Lily's favorite color, and it had become blatantly obvious in the first few days that she loved to read. Since then, he'd also discovered that she loved cats (she'd had one when she was younger), music, and muggle inventions called 'movies.' He couldn't do much about the movies or the muggle music she would have listened to before, but he was sure he could at least find a birthday present for her that had to do with cats.

The week seemed to fly by, and when Lily woke the morning of her birthday, she had mixed feelings. It was a little exciting knowing she was now eleven, and officially old enough to attend Hogwarts in the fall. She'd been just dying to start learning magic with a wand. Remus had let her read some old first year textbooks, so she'd read up on the different spells and potions and magical (and ordinary) herbs and plants. She'd begun to pay attention to the stars in the sky, seeing if she could identify different stars and constellations, but reading up on it wasn't the same as actually getting to practice it.

At the same time, she felt a bit disappointed, because the one thing she wanted more than anything for her birthday was for her parents to return, and she was sure that wasn't going to happen today, even if it was her birthday and she'd wished every night before going to sleep. They hadn't heard a word from them yet. Everyone expected them to return – they insisted they'd know if something was wrong – but nobody knew quite when.

She wasn't going to be a party pooper on her birthday though. She could tell that Remus had gone to a lot of trouble to make it a good birthday, and she was thankful for that.

Rubbing the sleep from her eyes, she slid out of bed and burrowed her feet in a pair of slippers. Having grown up in Florida, it felt odd to her to wear slippers in June, but the castle tended to be drafty, even in the summer, and the stone floors were quite cold. As she slipped on her robe and buttoned it, she thought she heard muffled voices coming from the common area. One voice she identified immediately as Remus', but there was another voice, and that one she didn't recognize a bit. A glance at the clock on her wall indicated it was barely eight in the morning. She couldn't imagine who would possibly be calling so early in the morning, unless it was one of the teachers. She hadn't had the chance to talk to them much, so she couldn't pick out their voices any more than she could a complete stranger.

She opened her bedroom door and stepped out into the hall, turning to see who Remus was talking to, and froze.

Remus was seated in an armchair, and two people were next to each other on the sofa. The man had the woman's hand in his, and the three of them were speaking in hushed tones. They hadn't noticed her yet, but Lily felt as if her legs had filled with led all of a sudden, and she couldn't seem to even make a sound.

Remus turned his head, noticing her for the first time. He smiled at her, though it was different from any other smile she'd seen on his face. She was having a hard time wrapping her head over it or contemplating why that was… she was having a hard time wrapping her head around anything at that moment.

"Good morning, Lily," he greeted her, and the man and woman turned to look at her. Lily stood there in shock, her eyes analyzing every centimeter of their faces. Every line, every curve, every imperfection she'd had memorized, and now she was seeing them in the flesh.

Only her eyes moved as she found herself looking back and forth between two chocolaty orbs and two emerald ones, and it shocked her to feel tears gathering in her own eyes.

Somehow she found her voice, just long enough to whisper two words, filled with so much hope and longing that she thought she might burst.

"Mom…? Dad…?"


	11. A Birthday Surprise

Note: Someone had commented anonymously on the last chapter about how she'd (or he'd) be rather mad at Harry and Ginny if it had been her (or him). Since I couldn't reply to that comment in a private message, I wanted to address that here.

I can't even begin to fully address every emotion Lily is feeling, not without several chapters to write it out (and it will take several chapters to better explore how this has affected Lily). I don't think there's anything childish about feeling anger, and likewise, Lily is going to have the opportunity to explore her own anger (and hurt) over having been "abandoned" by her birth parents (even though we know that Ginny only gave her up to protect her, and later tried to find her).

* * *

Chapter 10: A Birthday Surprise

Ginny was on her feet in an instant. Her eyes were glued to the girl in the hallway; she didn't notice Harry rise beside her. Her own eyes roamed over Lily, memorizing every inch of the girl's face. Cream-colored skin, topped with a splattering of light freckles. Almond-shaped eyes, each filled with the most brilliant emerald found on earth; her father's eyes. Rich red tresses cascaded over her shoulders, and Ginny could just imagine the way her hair probably shimmered in the sunlight.

She was the most beautiful thing Ginny had ever seen.

She was _here._ After ten years, ten months, and fourteen days, her daughter had finally returned. It was almost too good to be true.

"Lily," she breathed.

Heart thudding in her chest, she moved at the same time Lily did. Within a heartbeat, the eleven year old was in her arms.

Time seemed to stand still as mother and daughter stood in the middle of the room, arms wrapped tight around each other, oblivious to the rest of the world. Ginny felt the tears slide down her face, but she didn't dare let go of Lily to wipe them away. Instead, she tilted her head down and lovingly kissed her daughter's hair.

For her part, Lily was sure she must be dreaming. It wasn't possible that she could just wake up one morning, on her birthday of all days, and she'd get the one thing she'd wanted most of all – her parents. This was the stuff of fairy tales and happily-ever-afters, not real life. Still, she could feel the moisture on her head from her mother's tears. Her scalp tingled when Ginny's lips touched it. As unreal as it seemed, she didn't think she'd feel this much in a dream.

Just to be sure, without letting go, she shifted one hand behind Ginny to pinch her opposite wrist. She flinched, and knew that it couldn't possibly be a dream.

The moment she felt Lily's sudden movement, Ginny shifted so that she could see her daughter's face without letting go. "What's wrong?" she asked at once. "Are you hurt?"

Surprised that the woman had noticed, Lily shook her head. "Nothing. It's nothing." Ginny wouldn't stop searching her face for some sign otherwise, and Lily realized that her mother didn't believe the fib. "I'm fine," Lily insisted. "I only pinched myself, because I thought…" She paused, a little nervous to continue. "I thought I must be dreaming."

"Oh, my darling," Ginny said, pulling Lily more snugly into her arms.

They stayed that way a long while. It wasn't until Ginny heard her name whispered that she looked up and met her husband's gaze. She'd honestly forgotten he and Remus were even there.

Harry smiled gently, and there was an understanding expression in his eyes. "I know that you don't want to let go of Lily," he told her, "but I'd really like a chance to hug my daughter."

Lily felt the vibrations in Ginny's chest before she heard her mother's soft chuckle. It was a beautiful sound. "You're right," Ginny agreed. "I don't want to let her go."

Harry chuckled too, and Lily thought she could listen to the happy sounds of her parents' amusement all day. "Please, Gin?"

Kissing Lily on the forehead, Ginny wrapped an arm around her daughter's shoulders and together they walked over to where Harry stood.

He smiled down at Lily, and it made her feel warm inside. Opening his arms, he said, "C'mere love," and Lily bolted into his embrace.

Harry hadn't been sure how he'd feel when he finally met his daughter, but in that instant he felt a sense of completeness he had not anticipated. He hugged her just as tight as Ginny had, marveling over the fact that he was really a father.

He'd known for years that he had a daughter out there. It had been a shock when Ginny had told him about the pregnancy and the daughter she'd given up not long after the war had ended. That shock had quickly turned to anger over the fact that she'd given him no say in the matter. It had probably been the roughest patch Harry and Ginny had ever had as a couple. After many talks, Ginny had managed to convince Harry that by not telling Harry before, they'd kept Lily safe from Voldemort. If Harry had known, it would've taken but one look into Harry's mind for Voldemort to know about the girl, and then who knew if they would've been able to protect her until he was ultimately defeated?

It was one thing knowing he had a child out there somewhere, but it was quite another to have her here in his arms. She'd been almost an abstract before, whereas now she was flesh and blood. He didn't think he'd ever been this happy, not even on his wedding day.

He wasn't sure how long they stood there before he heard a faint rumbling. He was sure it wasn't his own stomach, as he and Ginny had grabbed something quick to eat before coming to Hogwarts, so it confused him until he realized that Lily obviously hadn't had breakfast yet.

"You must be hungry," he said as he pulled back a little to get another look at her. Wow, did she look like his mum… He couldn't get over it. It was one thing to have pictures of his mum from her school days and the few years after, but to see what she must've looked like in person was a different experience entirely.

Lily shrugged her shoulders. "Not really."

Remus started to say something, but caught himself just in time. With Harry and Ginny here, he needed to give them a chance to take care of Lily, and that included letting them decide whether or not they believed her. They _were_ her parents.

He didn't need to worry, though, as Harry grinned. "No? So there's a lion trapped in your stomach, then? Because that was a mighty growl I just heard."

A small smile formed on Lily's lips. He was kind of funny. "Maybe just a little," she relented. "But I don't want to go to the table. I want to stay in here with you and talk."

"We can talk while you're eating breakfast, and we'll have most of the day for talking, as well." That said, he guided her into the kitchen, where the table was already set and two extra seats had already been added.

As Lily reluctantly sat on a chair, Harry pulled a small box wrapped in red paper with a dainty gold bow from his robes and placed it on the table in front of Lily. She looked up at him, then at Ginny, surprise written all over her face.

"The rest of your presents are at home, and you can open them at your party or tonight, but your mother and I wanted you to have this first thing this morning. Happy birthday, princess."

It didn't surprise Lily so much that they knew it was her birthday. Her mother _had_ been there when she was born, after all. Hadn't they been out of the country, though? When had they had time to get her presents? She honestly hadn't expected anything. Still, Lily unwrapped the box delicately, not wanting to tear even the smallest corner of the pretty paper. It was a small jewelry box, which opened to reveal a beautiful gold heart locket on a delicate gold chain.

"My grandmother gave this locket to my mum on her eleventh birthday," Ginny explained gently. "My mum then gave it to me on my eleventh birthday. I'd hoped to be able to give it to you one day." She watched as Lily carefully opened the locket to reveal a younger Ginny and an infant. "Your Uncle Bill took this picture of us a few days after you were born. I wanted you to have a copy. I know I missed so much of your childhood, but I've loved you your whole life, Lily. Happy birthday, my darling."

Lily rubbed the tears from her eyes with her fist. "Can… can you help me put it on…?"

Ginny smiled through her own tears. "Of course." She fastened the clasp behind Lily's neck and then lifted her hair so that the locket hung properly. Before she could move further, Lily had sprung from her chair and wrapped her arms around Ginny's torso.

"Thank you," she mumbled into her mother's chest.

"You're welcome," was all Ginny could manage.

* * *

An hour later, Lily was settled on the sofa, nestled in between Ginny and Harry; her head was resting on Ginny's shoulder, while the woman's arm was wrapped comfortingly around her shoulders. Remus had tried to excuse himself to allow the family some alone time, but Harry had insisted he stay. In Harry's mind, Remus had been the one to take care of Lily since she'd returned to the UK, and he knew more about her than Harry and Ginny did just then. Likewise, Lily knew him better, and he decided she'd probably feel more comfortable having someone she knew better around.

"Where were you?" she'd first asked once they'd returned to the sitting area. "When you were out of the country, I mean."

"We can't tell you that," Harry told her honestly. "It's not that we don't want to, or that we're trying to keep secrets from you. We were on a mission for the Ministry of Magic, and we're not allowed to tell anyone where we went."

"You just got back this morning?"

"We actually returned yesterday afternoon. We received word from Professor McGonagall early this morning letting us know that you were here. We came as soon as we heard, but we didn't want to wake you, so we spoke with Remus for a bit."

Ginny squeezed Lily a little tighter. "Your adoptive parents…" she began, almost afraid to ask but needing to know regardless of the answer. "Did they take good care of you?"

Lily glanced at her mother, and was surprised to see her warm brown eyes shining with unshed tears. "Yeah, they took really good care of me. And they always told me that you loved me a lot, because it had to have been hard for you to give me up."

"Lily, it was the hardest decision I ever had to make. If we hadn't been in the middle of a war… if you hadn't been in so much danger…"

"Sister Teresa said it had to have been serious, because you were really scared," Lily said, nodding. "Was I really in that much danger? Why couldn't you guys just keep me safe?"

"How much do you know about the war, Lily?"

Lily shrugged. "Voldemort was this really evil wizard and he killed a bunch of people and you and Dad were fighting against him, and Dad's the reason he's gone."

"I suppose you've been told the basics, but there's a lot more to it than that. Normally I wouldn't condone telling a child all of this, but I want you to understand why I took you to that church ten years ago. Voldemort was the epitome of evil. He didn't care for anyone, and he would do whatever, hurt whomever, to achieve his goal. There was an organization of adults who were fighting Voldemort, the Order of the Phoenix. There were others, such as your father and myself, who also did what we could, though we were too young to be in the Order.

"Besides wanting to rule the wizarding world, Voldemort had one other goal: to kill your father. He had tried to do so when your dad was just a baby, and had failed then. It had nearly destroyed Voldemort, but eventually he returned, and from that point he was determined to finish the job he'd started years before. When I found out I was pregnant with you, I did not tell your dad.

"It wasn't because I didn't want him to know, or that I thought he wouldn't want to know. Your dad and I knew, even back then, that we loved each other, and I knew that one day I'd marry him. I've told you that Voldemort was evil; he was also immensely powerful. Among his abilities, he was able to look inside someone else's mind. Often he did this to twist their mind and torture the person, but he and your dad had a special link between their minds. It was easier for him to see into your dad's mind than it was for him to see into anyone else's. If I told your dad about you, there was the possibility that Voldemort would see you in your dad's mind, and he wouldn't have hesitated to have you killed. There were very few safe places from Voldemort in Europe back then, and I couldn't take any chances with you. I waited until you were at least a month old, and I made the difficult decision to hide you somewhere I figured Voldemort would never think to look. I altered your appearance so that you would be further hidden from Voldemort and his followers. I left you with a young nun, who promised you would be taken care of. I had to trust what she was telling me and hope for the best. After the war, I did try to go back and find you, but the nun wasn't there and I'd hidden you well enough that I couldn't find you. I never gave up hope that one day, we'd find you."

Lily took a moment to process the information she'd just been given. It was more than anyone else had bothered to tell her, and while it bothered her that her parents had given her up all those years ago, a part of her understood, at least in the tiniest way, why they did what they did.

"What about when Mom told you about me?" she asked Harry, glancing over at him.

"At first, I was shocked," he told her, wanting to be openly honest. "It was big news, finding out I had a child out there. Then, for a period of time, I was furious with your mum for not telling me before and for giving you up without giving me a say in the matter. Eventually I understood her reasons, and I even agreed that it might've been the safest choice for you."

"What's my middle name? Sister Teresa told the Wesleys that you never told her my middle name, so they decided to call me Lily Anne."

Harry smiled. "Luna. Your middle name is Luna."

"That means moon, right?"

"It does, but your mum and I actually chose it because we have a very dear friend named Luna, and it seemed fitting to honor her in your name."

"Lily Luna Potter…" Lily murmured, testing her name out. She actually liked it better than Lily Anne. It was a little different, but it flowed nicely. "Do I have any brothers or sisters?" Lily wasn't sure she really wanted to know. It would hurt to find out that she did, and they'd been able to stay with their parents while she couldn't, despite the fact that she'd always wanted a sibling.

Ginny shook her head, speaking before Harry could say anything. "No. I couldn't… Knowing I already had you out there somewhere, I couldn't bring myself to have any other children. It wouldn't have felt right. I needed you here with us first, before I could even consider expanding our family."

"I have cousins, though," Lily said knowingly. "Maddy and her brother and sister are my cousins, and I know I have a lot of Weasley aunts and uncles."

"You've met Maddy?"

"Yeah. She and I are friends."

"Partners-in-crime is more like it," Remus amended with a laugh.

Giving her daughter a gentle squeeze, Ginny asked, "Have you met your other aunts, uncles, and cousins?"

"Hermione… I mean, I guess she'd be Aunt Hermione… came with Remus to pick me up from my school in Florida. I met her husband – Uncle Ron – but I didn't know he was my uncle then and I don't think he knew it either. Aunt Hermione said she had kids, but I haven't met them. And I've met Aunt Fleur and Emme and Sebastien while visiting Maddy. I don't remember the others' names."

Ginny smiled. "I do come from a rather large family. It's a bit ironic, considering how small your dad's family is. Well, Bill is the oldest. After Bill, there's Charlie. He's not married, and he's been studying dragons in Romania for a while now. Then there's Percy. He just married Audrey. After Percy are the twins, Fred and George. Fred died in the war, but George is doing well. He and my brother Ron own a joke shop together that George used to own with Fred. Ron is my youngest sibling, and he's still a year older than I am. You know his wife, Hermione, already, and they have two children – Rose and Hugo. It's all right if you don't remember them all. Your father had a hard time keeping track at first."

"What about your mom and dad…? My grandparents…?"

"They are absolutely going to love you," Ginny said with so much certainty that Lily had to believe it was true. "I do want to prepare you up front for the fact that she will probably yell a bit, but it won't ever be at you. Despite the mischief Maddy gets into on a regular basis, I haven't heard her raise her voice at her – ever. On the contrary, your grandmother is going to be livid with me for not telling her about you sooner, and when my mother gets mad, she gets loud."

"I suppose I'd better prepare myself for an earful, as well," Harry said with a rueful grin, but Ginny just snorted.

"You? Harry, you're golden. When has Mum EVER been cross with you? Didn't matter what you and Ron got into… don't you remember? She never blamed _you_…"

"That's only because she felt sorry for me, not having my parents around and all that. I'm sure she's gotten over that by now, or she will by the time we tell her about Lily."

"What about your family?" Lily asked, turning to look at Harry. "Do I have any cousins or aunts or uncles on your side?"

"Not so much," Harry explained, thinking of his estranged relatives for the first time in over a year. "I was an only child. My parents died when I was just a year old, so they didn't have the chance to have any other children. My dad was an only child, as well, and my mum had one sister. She has a husband and a son my age. I grew up with my aunt, uncle, and cousin, but we were never close, and my aunt doesn't look a thing like Mum."

"What are their names?" Lily wanted to know. "Maddy and I couldn't seem to find the names of anyone in your family."

"My dad's name was James Potter, and my mum's maiden name was Lily Evans. Her sister, Petunia, married Vernon Dursley, and their son's name is Dudley. I'm curious though…" Harry studied Lily as he asked a question of his own. "How is it you knew about your mum's family but you didn't know about mine?"

Lily huffed a bit at the memory of being kept in the dark for so long. "No one would tell me anything about either of you, really. Professor McGonagall said I was safer not knowing, but I didn't think it was fair. Everyone else seemed to know but me. When I met Uncle Bill, he told me he was my uncle, so I figured I had to be related to the Weasleys or to Aunt Fleur's family. Maddy and I decided we were going to figure it out together. She figured I wasn't related to Aunt Fleur's family, because Aunt Fleur's sister is too young to have a kid my age, so I had to be related to the Weasleys somehow. After the spell you put on me to change how I looked broke, Remus told me I looked like my dad's mom and that he thought I was probably named after her. My dad couldn't be a Weasley because Maddy said I didn't look like Uncle Bill's mom, and her name wasn't Lily, anyway. We knew for sure though when I took out the sketch Sister Teresa had drawn of you when I was a baby and Maddy said it looked just like you," she finished, turning to Ginny.

They both sat in silence, absorbing the information and marveling over how much their daughter could talk when she wanted to.

Harry was the first to recover. "But you knew I was your dad when you saw me today," he reminded her. "How did you know that if you didn't know anything else about my family?"

The eleven year old sighed. "Maddy and I tried, we really did. Nobody would say a word, not even Hagrid. Maddy told me that you two were married, but you hadn't been for too long, and we figured maybe we could try to check and see if it was you. We wouldn't have known anything if we hadn't…"

Lily froze, eyes wide, hand flying to her mouth. They didn't know she'd been in their house yet… her house, too, but she hadn't known that at the time and she hadn't exactly asked permission first or gone with an adult. What would they say if they knew the truth? Would they be mad?

"If you hadn't what?" Ginny prompted gently when Lily didn't say anything else.

Remus stepped in, taking some of the attention off of Lily. "Maddy and Lily went on a bit of a reconnaissance mission in order to find out. They decided the answer had to be in Serenity House, so one night while Lily was spending the night at Bill's, Maddy and Lily decided to Floo over to Serenity House after everyone else had gone to bed."

Harry didn't know what to say to that, but Ginny surprised him by laughing. "Now why does that sound familiar?" she chuckled, shooting a half-hearted glare at Harry.

"What are you looking at me for?" Harry demanded in a light voice. "I didn't sneak off to people's houses in the middle of the night."

"No, you only chased after sorcerers' stones and basilisks and rats and murderers," was her sarcastic retort. "So Lily, what did you find at Serenity House?"

They didn't seem too cross with her. In fact, they seemed more amused than anything, though she had no idea what her mom had meant about her dad going after stones and animals and murderers and basi-somethings. "There was a picture of a family in what looked like the living room. The woman looked like me, only a little older. There was a man beside her with dark, messy hair and a handsome face. The woman was holding a baby that looked a lot like the man, only he had the woman's eyes. After that, Professor McGonagall said it would be better just to tell me the truth, though it meant I had to promise to stay at Hogwarts all the time until you got back."

"Did you get to see the rest of the house?"

She shook her head. "No, Maddy thought it would be a good idea to Floo back to her house before anyone could notice we were gone, but we didn't get back quick enough. Uncle Bill was waiting for us, and he was really mad." She blushed a little at the memory of the spankings she'd gotten that night and the following day.

If they noticed the blush, they didn't comment on it. "Well, we'll have to make sure you have a chance to see the whole house today then," Ginny decided. "Your father and I thought we'd give you the chance to meet more of your family today, before the party that Bill and Remus have planned for you. What do you think?"

"I'd like that," Lily said, thinking this day was during out to be maybe the best birthday ever.


	12. Weasleys and Parties

Chapter 11: Weasleys and Parties

"Mum! We're home!" Ginny called out as she, Harry, and Lily stepped through the back door of the Burrow. "Harry, maybe it would be best if you took Lily to meet Dad while I talk to Mum, if he's home. He's bound to be more levelheaded."

"I'm not so sure that he will be, Gin," Harry replied, doubt seeping into his voice.

Ginny opened her mouth to respond when a plump woman with bright red hair bustled into the kitchen. "Ginny!" she exclaimed, rushing to embrace her daughter. "I'm so glad you and Harry are back. How was the journey?"

"It was fine, Mum," Ginny replied as Molly Weasley let go of her to give Harry a hug as well. "Nothing too eventful."

"That's good dear." Her eyes fell on Lily, and she smiled at the child, though her eyes shined with curiosity. "Who is this?"

"Mum, this is Lily," Ginny said simply. "Is Dad home?"

"He's out in the garage, tinkering with one thing or another," came her suspicious reply. "There's something you're not telling me, Ginny." Turning back to Lily, the suspicion melted into a sincere, welcoming expression. "It's nice to meet you, Lily. You know, you look rather familiar…"

"Harry!" Ginny exclaimed brightly, cutting Molly off. "Why don't you and Lily go out to the garage and visit with Dad for a few minutes?"

Harry looked from his wife's urgent expression to his mother-in-law's darkening one and knew the best thing for all involved would be to get out of there as quickly as possible. "That sounds like a wonderful idea, love. Come on Lily; let's go out to the garage." Before Molly could say anything, he took Lily's hand and hurried her back out the door.

Ginny waited for the door to close behind them before turning to her mother. Molly Weasley was a bomb waiting to explode. "Ginevra Weasley…"

"Mum, please," Ginny cut her off with a sigh. "Could you at least let me tell you what's going on before you have a fit?"

Molly narrowed her eyes, but gave a curt nod. "All right, let's have it then."

"Lily is Harry's and my daughter. She's your granddaughter."

"I'm sorry, she's your _**what**_?"

"Our daughter."

"And how is it exactly that you have a daughter who is too old to have been born after the two of you married and who I have never met before today?"

She stared at her mother's reddening face, and took a deep breath. "Sit down, Mum, please. It's a long story…"

* * *

"She didn't seem too bad…" Lily muttered as she fought to keep up with Harry.

"Trust me, Lily, it's going to get ugly, and you don't need to listen to that. Your grandmother is about to get a huge shock, and she needs to let it out of her system. We'll just let her shout it out, and then I guarantee she'll be spoiling you just as she does her other grandkids. Your granddad is a pretty neat person, anyway. He's fascinated by anything muggle-related, so I'm sure he'll have lots of questions for you, seeing as how you spent so much time living with muggles. You should've seen him the day I first met him. I'd grown up with my aunt, uncle, and cousin, of course, all of whom were muggles, and your grandfather was asking me questions about _everything_."

Lily just listened quietly as they reached the garage, a building that stood separate from the main house. The whole idea of a garage not being attached to the house seemed strange to Lily, but then again, much of what she'd seen since arriving in the UK had seemed strange. Not having seen any witches or wizards driving cars here in Britain, she was a bit surprised they had a garage to begin with.

The main door was open, and they stepped inside. The place was a bit of a mess, but Lily spotted a balding red-haired man over in the corner almost immediately. He was seated at a work bench, and seemed to be playing with something in his hands.

"Hello, Arthur," Harry said, greeting his father-in-law. The elder man turned immediately and offered the younger man a grin.

"Harry! It's good to see you!" He crossed the garage to shake Harry's hand. "You and Ginny are back from your mission, then?"

"Yes sir. We just got in yesterday. Everything went well."

"And who is this young lady?"

Harry took a small breath. "Arthur, I'd like you to meet my daughter, Lily."

Arthur blinked several times, like he wasn't sure if he'd heard what he thought he'd heard. "I'm sorry. Did you say your _daughter_?"

"Mine and Ginny's," Harry confirmed with a nod. "Ginny had her before the end of the war, and was afraid that something would happen to her if Voldemort…" Arthur flinched. "…found out about her. The only way she could think of completely protecting Lily from him was to cast a charm on Lily, altering her appearance, and taking her to another country. She took Lily to a church in the United States and asked a nun there to find her a good, safe home. I didn't know about any of this until after the war, and not long after that Ginny and I traveled to the States to try to find Lily, but by that time we couldn't. Professor McGonagall managed to find her, after all these years, and had Remus and Hermione bring her back to Europe." Arthur blinked once more, but didn't say a word. "I know this is a huge shock, and we should've said something sooner. We just didn't know how to come out and tell you guys that we had a daughter somewhere out there but we didn't know where she was."

Taking a deep breath, Arthur finally nodded. "I think I understand, Harry. At least we're getting to meet Lily now. Where's Ginny?"

"Inside, explaining things to Molly."

Arthur winced. "Perhaps it'd be better if we just stayed out here until Molly calms down, then. Well, Lily, I guess this would make me your granddad. I'm very glad to meet you." He held his arms open toward her, deciding it best to let her make the next move.

She didn't disappoint; seconds later he felt two delicate arms wrapping around his waist. He moved his own arms so they enveloped Lily. It was different, meeting his grandchild for the first time when she clearly hadn't been an infant for years. He actually felt more emotional than he had while first holding any of his other grandkids, even Maddy, despite the fact that she'd been the first.

When he felt her start to pull back, Arthur let go. "How old are you, Lily?"

"Eleven," she told him quietly, feeling rather emotional herself. Her adoptive grandparents had died years ago, and she hadn't had any grandparents since. It was nice, knowing she was going to have that again.

"Eleven, huh? I suppose you'll be starting at Hogwarts in the fall then?" Lily nodded. "When was your birthday, Lily?"

"Today," came her sheepish answer.

"It's your birthday?" Arthur asked in surprise. "Well then, happy birthday! You are having a party to celebrate the occasion, aren't you?" At that, he turned an expectant look to Harry.

"Yes, Remus and Bill have orchestrated a celebration at Shell Cottage this afternoon," confirmed Harry. "Ginny and I would love for you and Molly to be there. I'm sure Bill would've said something before, but apparently Professor McGonagall was adamant about the fewer people knowing of Lily's existence, the better, at least until Ginny and I returned."

"Of course we'll be there"

"Thank you," Harry said with a relieved smile.

"So, Lily, were you living with wizards before?"

Lily shook her head. "No, my adoptive mom and dad were muggles."

"Muggles, you say?" Arthur's face lit up like a child on Christmas morning. "I have this gadget I found maybe a month ago!" he exclaimed as he rummaged through a drawer. "Couldn't figure it out, and I couldn't manage to take it apart. It has these little rectangles and triangles inside a larger circle." He offered a small, silver rectangle with a cord sticking out of one end to Lily. "Do you know what it is?"

Lily looked at the small device in her hand. "Oh, it's an iPod!"

"An eye pod?" repeated Arthur. "How would you fit an eye in there?"

She giggled. "Not 'eye,' like the eyes on your face. The letter 'I'! It's spelled i-P-o-d, and the 'p' is capitalized. It's actually a 2G iPod shuffle. It plays music."

"Like… a radio?"

"Sort of, only the songs are saved in the iPod, and you can choose which one you want to listen to," Lily explained.

"Fascinating. How do muggles make it work without magic? I don't see a plug…"

"It runs on a battery, and when the battery runs low you can recharge it."

"How would we recharge it? It won't seem to turn on."

Lily tucked one of the ear buds into her ear and pushed the power button. Nothing happened. It looked like the battery _was_ dead.

"You need a cord that can plug into the iPod, but I don't have one," Lily murmured as she turned the iPod over in her hands. She wondered…

There had been times when she'd made things happen without meaning to. Aunt Mary had explained that it was her accidental magic, and that it was normal, but after Aunt Mary's death, Lily had begun to gain a greater control over her accidental magic. She didn't really have outbursts anymore, other than that one day at Shell Cottage when she'd managed to break her mother's spell. She had discovered, both to her delight and confusion, that she could intentionally make things happen. Aunt Mary had insisted that Lily wouldn't be able to have that kind of control over her magic until she started at a wizarding school and had a wand of her own.

Looking at the iPod, she wondered if she'd be able to make the battery work. It was a muggle invention, but maybe she could 'magically' recharge the battery, even a little, so she could show her new granddad how it worked. He'd seemed very interested. Lily closed her hands around the device and shut her eyes in concentration.

"Lily?" Harry asked, narrowing his eyes slightly as he tried to figure out what his daughter was up to. "What are you doing?"

"Shhh, Dad," she muttered, her eyes still closed. Nearly ten long seconds passed until she heard a click and music flowed into her ear. Her eyes popped open in delight. "It works!" she exclaimed, taking the ear bud out of her ear and handing it to her grandfather.

Arthur looked at the ear bud. "What do I do with it?"

"Put it in your ear."

He did so, and jumped a little as the music blared into his ear. "What… what is this music?"

"It's pop music," Lily told him. "The singer's name is Pink."

"Pink? As in the color?"

"Yup."

"How did you get it to work?"

"That's what I'd like to know," Harry added, looking intently at Lily.

For the first time, Lily wondered if maybe it wasn't such an idea to try to make it magically work. Her dad seemed rather suspicious. "I, uh, wanted it to work, so I just thought about it really hard, and it started working."

"Have you been able to do that before, Lily?" Harry questioned her.

"Make an iPod work?"

"Make something happen that you wanted to happen by intentionally thinking about it."

"Uh… a couple of times…" stammered Lily. "I never made anything bad happen, and I never did anything to hurt anyone. Are… are you mad?"

He really wasn't, to be completely honest. He could tell she was being truthful about her intentions, but it unnerved Harry to realize how much control his eleven-year-old daughter had over her magic already, before she'd even begun attending Hogwarts. He could remember conversations he and Ginny had had with McGonagall and Dumbledore (or his painting representation, anyway) in the headmistress's office about Lily, and about the power she might possess, but he'd been hopeful that Dumbledore's suspicions had been wrong. Lily shouldn't be able to make things consciously happen, and yet, here she'd done it right in front of him.

"No, love, I'm not mad. I'm just a little surprised. Magical children don't usually have that much control over their magic before they begin attending Hogwarts."

Lily frowned. "Does that mean there's something wrong with me?"

Harry quickly pulled her into his arms and held her close. "There's not a single thing wrong with you, Lily Luna. You are perfect just the way you are."

Sighing softly, Lily wrapped her arms around her dad, letting her head rest on his chest.

"Maybe we should check on Molly and Ginny," Arthur suggested after a moment. "Make sure they're both still alive and all."

Lily thought Arthur sounded rather somber, but she felt Harry's chuckle and figured it must be a joke. "Come on, love," he told her, kissing the top of her head before letting go. "Let's go back inside so you can properly meet your grandma."

* * *

Several hours later, Lily found herself stepping out of the Floo and into the sitting room at Shell Cottage. She was wearing a new dress, courtesy of her parents, who had insisted she have a new 'birthday outfit' for the party. Lily hadn't objected to new clothes or wearing a dress for that matter. She was definitely in touch with her girly-girl side. Her hair had been pulled back with clips on the side, but otherwise hung freely down her back.

Looking around the room, she was excited and anxious at the same time. She hadn't seen Hermione in a few weeks, and after getting to know her grandparents a bit, she hadn't had the chance to really meet any of her other family members from Ginny's side. What would they think of her? Everyone else had been accepting so far, but she couldn't help but feel nervous anyway.

She didn't see it coming as Maddy practically knocked her over in an attempt to hug her. "Lily! You're here!" the slightly younger girl exclaimed, jumping up and down while still holding onto Lily. "I can't believe it's your birthday!"

"Can't… breathe…" Lily muttered.

"Oh!" Maddy let go at once, grinning while Harry and Ginny stepped out of the Floo. "Sorry. Happy birthday! I can't believe that Aunt Ginny and Uncle Harry are back, and they're really your parents, and you're really my cousin! And now it's your party, and oh my gosh there's a mountain of presents for you already!"

"Maddy, dear, let Lily breathe," Fleur said as she entered the room. "Happy birthday, Lily." Fleur kissed Lily's cheeks and smiled. "Harry, Ginny, it's wonderful to see you again. Everyone is out in the garden."

"It seems we should join them, then!" Ginny said, and she, Harry, and Lily headed out to the garden. Lily immediately recognized Hermione, Ron, Emme, Sebastien, Arthur, Molly, and Remus. There were several people whom she didn't recognize, though. Hermione was holding a little boy, no more than a year old, and there was a little girl sitting with Ron. Lily thought they must be Hugo and Rose. There was a woman and a boy her age with Remus. Remus had mentioned to her before that he had a wife and son, though Lily had never had the chance to meet them. There was another man, sitting on the ground with Emme and Sebastien, and it looked like he was telling them a story. His hair was the same fiery red as Ginny's. Lily wondered which one of her mother's brothers he was.

There were several tables set up around the garden. One table had a pile of wrapped boxes and packages so high that Lily thought it must be someone else's birthday, as well.

"Lily!"

She looked away from the table to see Hermione and Ron approaching, each holding a child. "Hi…" she said shyly.

"It's so good to see you again!" Hermione exclaimed, shifting the baby boy to one hip so she could hug Lily with her free arm. "I wish I could've told you who I was, and who you were, before, but Professor McGonagall was insistent that we wait for your parents to return." Letting go of Lily, she offered a hug to Harry and Ginny.

"Do I call you Aunt Hermione now?"

"Absolutely, darling. I've heard you've already met, but this is your Uncle Ronald," she said, gesturing to Ron, who rolled his eyes lightly.

"Uncle Ron would be just fine," he said, setting the little girl on the ground so he could hug Lily properly. "Your aunt likes to tease me. It's nice to see you again, Lily."

"These are your cousins, Hugo and Rosie," Hermione continued, indicating the baby in her arms and the little girl who now held her father's hand.

Lily smiled and waved at Hugo, who grinned and waved a chubby hand at her. Glancing down at the girl, she offered another smile and said in a soft voice, "Hi."

"Hi," the three-year-old said in a clear voice. "My name is Rosie and I'm three," she explained, holding up three fingers. "Why haven't I seen you before?"

She bit her lip, wondering what to say. Luckily, Hermione saved her by saying, "Lily was living somewhere else for a little while."

"Why?"

"It doesn't matter why, Rosie. Let's not ask your cousin too many questions right now. She's probably feeling overwhelmed."

Rose didn't ask Hermione what she meant by that, and Lily wondered if the three-year-old understood what 'overwhelmed' meant. In any case, the child didn't pester Lily, and she was grateful.

Hermione glanced at Harry and Ginny. "Has Lily met Tonks or Teddy yet?"

"Not yet," Ginny responded, glancing over at the family. "I suppose now would be a good time. Lily, would you like to meet Remus' family?"

"Okay," Lily agreed in a soft voice, though to be quite honest she was rather nervous to meet them. She remembered the headmistress mentioning Remus' family back when she first arrived at Hogwarts, but she hadn't thought about them much since then, and Remus hadn't really spoken about them much. They'd been on 'holiday' as the headmistress had said. Lily had since learned that to the Brits, going on holiday was the equivalent of going on a vacation. Would they be put out by Lily for keeping Remus from going on vacation with them?

She didn't object, though, as her parents led her over to the family of three. Remus and a pretty woman with a heart-shaped face and hair a rather shocking shade of pink were standing several yards away from a blanket, talking. To Lily's surprise, Maddy was seated on the blanket, chatting with a boy whose hair was short, spiky, and bright green. What amazed Lily the most was that it didn't look like either of them had dyed their hair. You couldn't see any hint of a natural hair color underneath it. It was as if their hair had been perfectly white before and had been colored with brand new markers.

The woman looked up and smiled at the trio. "Wotcher, Harry!"

Harry smiled and nodded. "Hi, Tonks. Did you and Teddy have a nice holiday?"

"It was lovely, thank you," Tonks replied. "Remus told me all about your daughter. Is this Lily?"

"Yes," answered Ginny. "Lily, I'd like you to meet Remus's wife, Nymphadora Tonks Lupin. She prefers to be addressed by her maiden surname only."

Tonks rolled her eyes. "As would you if your parents had decided to name you something as absurd as 'Nymphadora.'"

Remus grinned from his spot beside her. "Yes, dear, but your mother's family does have a tradition of naming children after stars or constellations. Unusual names aren't so unusual in your family."

"Remus Lupin, you know full well that my name didn't come from a star or a constellation."

"Perhaps not, but according to Greek mythology, nymphs were beautiful woman who had the ability to change form. It was a very fitting name, don't you think?"

"Bah," Tonks huffed in disagreement. "Anyway, we were talking about Lily, here. Are you having a good birthday so far, Lily?"

"Yes, thank you," Lily replied. She thought Tonks was rather entertaining, and she seemed very friendly.

"Have you met Teddy yet? He and Maddy are good friends. Remus tells me you and Maddy have become quite close yourselves. Perhaps you, Maddy, and Teddy will be as good of friends as your dad, Hermione, and Ron."

Lily glanced over at her father. "You're good friends with Aunt Hermione and Uncle Ron?"

Harry nodded. "Your Uncle Ron was my best friend since our first year at Hogwarts. We befriended your Aunt Hermione that same year, and we've been really close since."

"At any rate, Lily, if you'd like to go join Teddy and Maddy, go ahead," Tonks told her.

"May I?" Lily asked Harry and Ginny.

"Of course, darling," Ginny told her with a smile. "It's your birthday. Go on."

Smiling, Lily walked over to the blanket. She felt a little shy about meeting Teddy, but Maddy was there and she felt completely comfortable around Maddy. Fortunately, she didn't have to speak first, as Maddy looked up at that moment and spotted her immediately.

"Lily! Come sit with us." She patted a spot beside her on the blanket, and Lily sat down gracefully. "Lily, this is Teddy Lupin. He's going to Hogwarts this year, too. Teddy, this is my cousin Lily."

"Hi, Teddy," Lily said.

He grinned in response. "Hi, Lily. Happy birthday."

She smiled shyly. "Thank you."

"Maddy was telling me how you just found out that Uncle Harry and Aunt Ginny are your parents."

"Are we cousins, too?" Lily asked when he gave them the title 'aunt' and 'uncle.'

"Not really. I mean, Uncle Harry is my godfather, but I'm not related to him, or at least, I don't think I am. Dad just insists on me calling them 'uncle' and 'aunt.' So where did you live before you came here? You don't sound like you're from anywhere in Britain."

"I lived in the United States," Lily explained.

"No way, you're American?"

Lily shrugged her shoulders. "Sort of, I guess. I was born here, but I lived in Florida for almost eleven years."

"What's it like over there?

"Sunny," Lily said immediately. "Florida is hot and sunny. Suppose that's why they call it the Sunshine State." It sure had been an adjustment, switching from the warm, sunny Florida weather to the cooler weather at Hogwarts.

"Who did you live with?"

"My adopted mom and dad."

"Were they wizards, too?"

She shook her head. "Muggles."

"That is so cool. What do muggle kids do?"

"Well, they go to school, of course. They play sports and games and read, just like wizards, I think, but muggles also have TVs and computers and CD players. I haven't seen any of those over here."

"What are those things?"

"Well, you can watch movies and shows on TVs. I guess it's like watching plays, only they're not live – they've been recorded before and you're seeing them later on. CD players play CDs, which have music on them, so you can listen to whatever music you want to, even if it's not playing on the radio at that moment. Computers are neat, because you can do all sorts of things on them. You can watch movies and TV shows or listen to music or play games. Then there's the internet… I don't really know how to describe the internet, though."

Teddy's eyes widened in amazement. "Wow. I wonder why we don't have any of those things in the wizarding world?"

"I don't know," Lily answered with a shrug. "Can I ask you a question though?"

"Sure."

"How did you get your hair that color of green? It's amazing, and it doesn't look like it's been dyed at all…"

Teddy grinned, scrunched up his face, and then watched with amusement as Lily's eyes popped open in surprise.

"You… your hair is _blue_ now…" she managed. "How did you do that?"

"I'm a metamorphmagus, like my mum. It means I can change my appearance without a wand. There aren't many metamorphmagi in the world, but it can be a lot of fun. I can change more than my hair color, if I want."

"That's so cool. Is that why your mom's hair is pink?"

"Yup. Mum likes pink best, so it tends to be pink when she's in a good mood."

Lily was about to ask Teddy something else when the red-haired man she'd seen earlier literally plopped down on the blanket beside them. She wasn't sure what to think, but Maddy and Teddy both grinned.

"Good afternoon, munchkins!" the man said with a grin. Lily noticed he only appeared to have one ear.

"Uncle George, we're not _that_ little!" Maddy protested with a giggle.

"Hmmm…" he mused, wiggling his eyebrows. Then he turned his attention to Lily. "You must be the birthday girl, which would make me your Uncle George. Are you having a good time?"

She nodded, feeling shy once again. "Yes, thank you."

"Bill tells me you and Maddy have become quite the little mischief makers together. Maddy and Teddy tend to make a habit out of finding trouble together, as well." Lily glanced at the two, who seemed to blush a little. "I have a feeling you three are going to find even more mischief together. I may have to give you some pointers before you head off to Hogwarts."

Lily wasn't sure what to say to that. Her Uncle George seemed like he wanted to _encourage_ their mischief, which was the complete opposite from every other adult.

"Uncle George and Uncle Fred were the ultimate mischief makers while they were at Hogwarts," Maddy told Lily.

"Second best," George amended. "The Marauders far surpassed our efforts, I have to say. I have high hopes for the three of you though. You, Peanut," at this, he pointed at Lily, "are the granddaughter of a Marauder, and Teddy here is the son of one."

Teddy seemed surprised by this revelation. "Dad? No way… Dad would've never gotten into trouble at school. He's all about rules."

"No, the Marauders didn't get caught on many of their endeavors. That's what made them so great, and your father did keep his nose out of trouble more than the others, but he was a Marauder."

"Can you tell us more about them?"

George glanced toward the house, where Fleur was levitating a beautiful cake toward one of the tables. "Those stories will have to wait for another time. I think it's time for the birthday girl to blow out the candles on her cake."

At the mention of cake, all three children jumped up and rushed to the table to get a look. Lily let out a soft, "Oh!" in amazement. The cake was two tiers high, with green frosting and little cat figurines scattered across the first and second tiers. Eleven candles formed a circle around the edge of the top tier. It was the best cake she'd seen, ever.

As more people gathered around the cake, Lily realized that her Uncle Bill and grandparents were there, too. They gave her a warm smile from across the table, and Lily grinned back. Her granddad had been right earlier about her grandma – once they'd gone back inside at the Burrow, Molly had morphed into the doting grandmother.

"Make a wish and blow out the candles, darling," Ginny said from behind her. Lily closed her eyes, smiled, and blew the candles out in one breath. Blushing as everyone clapped, she shuffled back until she bumped into Ginny, who wrapped her arms around Lily from behind.

Cake was passed around to everyone, and once they'd had their fill, they moved onto the presents. Lily opened package after package, revealing several books thanks to Hermione and Ron, some Weasley's products courtesy of George (and which caused Ginny to cast a lighthearted glare in her brother's direction), some new clothes from Molly and Arthur (Lily was pleased to note that the clothes were actually cute – she wondered where they'd found them), some paintings of cats to hang in her room from Remus and Tonks (Lily absolutely loved them!), two decks of cards (one for Exploding Snap and the other that were self-shuffling) from Bill and Fleur, and some sweets from Maddy (who had insisted to her parents that she find her own gift for Lily). Lily had been thrilled to find several chocolate frogs and a box of Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans inside that package. There hadn't been a gift there from Harry or Ginny, which Lily hadn't thought much of because they'd already given her the locket (which still hung around her neck), but Harry had quickly explained that her other gift was waiting at home.

_Home._

It was odd, realizing that she wouldn't be sleeping at Hogwarts tonight. She was both excited and nervous. On one hand, she now had a house to call her own, instead of just staying at the castle. On the other hand, she hadn't seen the rest of Serenity House when she and Maddy had Floo'd there that night, so she didn't know what to expect. Her things were still at Hogwarts, but her parents had assured her that they'd go there first to collect all her things.

With the party now winding down, Lily felt exhausted. So much had changed in one day, and she really wanted to climb into bed and go to sleep. She was sitting at one of the tables, her head resting on her arms, when a warm hand touched her back. Lily lifted her head just enough to glance over her shoulder at Harry, who had a knowing expression.

"Someone is tired," he mused. "Why don't we say goodbye to everyone and pick up your things so we can go home."

Lily, thinking that sounded rather nice, nodded her head.


	13. Serenity House

Chapter 12: Serenity House

For the second time in her life, Lily stepped out of the fireplace at Serenity House. This time, the candles were already lit, and the room had a distinctly warmer feel to it. She noticed for the first time that the large room was a library. Shelves lined two walls, and they were filled with books. There were several plush armchairs and an equally plush sofa. The walls not covered with books were decorated with pictures and artwork. Lily immediately fell in love with the cozy room.

Harry and Ginny stepped out of the Floo seconds later.

"Welcome home, darling," Ginny told Lily.

"Are… are all these books yours?" Lily asked, impressed by the private collection.

"They are. Your father inherited quite a few books from his godfather, and your Aunt Hermione, who is an avid reader, has contributed extensively. Do you like to read?"

Lily nodded enthusiastically. "I love books."

Ginny smiled. "I have a feeling you'll like your room, then."

Pulling several shrunken packages and pieces of luggage from the pocket of his robes, Harry handed them to Ginny. "Why don't you two get Lily's things unpacked, and I'll get supper put together."

"Sounds good to me," Ginny replied. "Let's go have a look at your room, Lily."

Lily followed her mother through the doorway opposite the fireplace into a hallway. She saw a large door to her right, and figured that was probably the front door. They turned in the opposite direction, and followed the hallway around the corner to a formal dining room and a set of stairs. Up the stairs they went, Lily observing everything with great interest as they made it up to the first floor. From there, they walked down a hallway until nearly the end, stopping at the second to last door on the left. Lily watched as Ginny pulled out her wand and waved it silently at the doorknob. It clicked and then turned; the door drifted open.

"Here we are," Ginny said, motioning for Lily to go in first.

The eleven-year-old entered the room and froze, her eyes scanning every visible inch in awe. Her first thought was that it was perhaps the best bedroom she'd ever been in.

The room was filled with furniture made of a deep walnut. A large dresser sat against the wall to her immediate left. Still to her left, against the opposite wall, sat a twin-sized four poster, decorated with a pastel pink and chocolate quilt and throw pillows of the same colors. There was a chest at the foot of the bed, also made of walnut. In the far right corner of the room was a desk and chair, bordered on the right by an armoire. From her time spent at Shell Cottage, Lily had come to realize that built-in closets weren't as common in the UK as they were in the States. On the far wall, between the bed and the chair, was a large window. It wasn't just any ordinary window, though – it was a bay window, complete with a large window seat cushioned with a large pillow and several smaller ones, also in shades of pink and brown.

That wasn't the best part, though. To Lily's immediate right, covering the walls from the bedroom door over to the armoire, floor to ceiling, were built-in bookshelves, and books of different sizes, colors, and materials covered at least half of each shelf. There was an area rug in that corner (there was another one between the bed and the desk), and two 'beanbag' chairs were placed in opposite corners of the rug.

Lily had her own mini library in her room.

When Lily didn't say anything at first, Ginny wondered if maybe the girl was unhappy with the room. "I know your favorite color is green, and if you want to change any of the linens or decorations…"

"No," Lily said with a shake of her head, interrupting Ginny. "It's perfect."

Ginny couldn't help the smile that spread across her face. "Then I suppose we ought to unpack your things, hmmm?" With another flick of her wand, Ginny had returned the packages and luggage to their original size. Lily thought it was pretty cool watching her parents perform spells without saying the words out loud, and found herself getting excited at the prospect of learning how to do such things with a wand.

Opening the luggage bags, Ginny offered Lily a grin. "Shall we do this the easy way or the traditional way?"

"What's the easy way?" Lily wanted to know.

With a wink, Ginny pointed her wand at the first open suitcase, muttered words that Lily had never heard before, and they both watched as the clothes levitated out of the bags and into separate drawers, which had opened of their own volition.

"I like the easy way…"

"Me too," Ginny agreed, and the two set to work finding a home for all of Lily's belongings. Her toiletries zoomed out of the room and presumably into the bathroom, while her hair accessories and brushes settled in a basket atop her dresser; her few stuffed animals found a home on the bed; the clothes were folded neatly in the dresser or, in the case of her robes and dresses, were hung in the armoire; the cat paintings were hung on the walls; the books from Ron and Hermione found a new home on the bookshelves; the decks of cards and box of Weasley's products tucked themselves away inside the chest, though Ginny made it abundantly clear that Lily was not to touch those products unless Ginny or Harry were there to supervise.

"We'll keep the Chocolate Frogs and Every Flavor Beans in the pantry," Ginny told Lily when she asked where they'd go. "Your father and I won't eat them, but I don't think you need them in your room where you'd be tempted to eat them all at once."

Lily, having expected as much, didn't complain.

Unpacking completed, they made their way down to the kitchen, which Lily found to be sunny and cheerful. Situated directly under Lily's bedroom, the kitchen also had a bay window with an amazing view of the back yard, and there was a round table near window just large enough to seat four people comfortably. It was at that table that Lily enjoyed her first meal at Serenity House – a delicious tomato bisque with crusty bread and fresh strawberries with cream for dessert. Lily was impressed with her dad's cooking skills – John Wesley, her adoptive father, had been one of those 'special' people who burnt water instead of boiling it. Thinking about her adoptive parents made Lily a bit sad, though the hurt in her heart had softened some since she'd moved to the UK.

Savoring her last bite of strawberry, Lily couldn't suppress a yawn.

"Someone's tired," Ginny observed. "You have one more gift to open for your birthday. If you go get ready for bed, your dad and I will bring it up to your room."

Sleepy as she was, Lily didn't have any objections. "Okay," she murmured, yawning again as she stood. "Where should I put my dishes?"

"In the sink will be just fine."

She placed her empty dishes in the sink before heading for the stairs. The stairs and hallway were well lit, helping Lily to feel more comfortable as she made her way up to her room by herself. Once there, she managed to find her pajama drawer with surprising ease and pulled out a pair of drawstring pants in a cute kitten print and a long-sleeved shirt, solid in color with a matching kitten in the middle of the chest. She changed then wondered what she was supposed to do with her dirty clothes. There wasn't a hamper anywhere in sight, and there obviously wasn't a closet where it could be hidden. She wasn't even sure where the laundry room was. Lily figured she'd have to wait until her parents came up to find out.

In the meantime, Lily went back out into the hallway and turned into the door next her hers, entering a comfortable bathroom. There, she washed her face and brushed her teeth. As she brushed, she glanced around the bathroom. There was a decent sized tub and shower in one corner. On the wall near the tub there appeared to be a cabinet, but upon opening the hatch, Lily realized it wasn't a cabinet, but a chute of some sort. She peered down the chute and saw a pile of clothes at the bottom. It was a laundry chute! Lily rinsed out mouth, gave her toothbrush a quick rinse, and darted back to her bedroom to gather her dirty clothes so she could drop them down the chute.

She'd just returned to her bedroom after taking care of her clothes when Ginny walked in.

"Your father is getting your present now," Ginny explained. "Are you ready for bed?"

Lily nodded. "I just need to brush my hair."

"I can do that for you, if you'd like."

Smiling, Lily retrieved her hairbrush from the basket atop her dresser. "Yes, please," she told Ginny, handing over her brush before removing the clips from her hair. She placed the clips in the basket, and then walked over to her mother who had taken a seat on the bed.

"Here," Ginny said, scooting back and patting the spot in front of her. Lily took a seat, and Ginny began to gently brush out Lily's long, red tresses. Though Lily couldn't see it, Ginny's eyes became damp from unshed tears. Here she was, sitting with her daughter, brushing her hair as she imagined she would've every other night had she found her sooner. So many moments she'd missed… It made her heart ache thinking about how she'd missed all of those firsts – first smile, first tooth, first time sitting without help, first step, first day of school… Lily had more firsts to come, of course, and Ginny was determined not to miss a single one.

Harry entered the room maybe a minute later, a long, odd-shaped package in one hand. Ginny smiled at him, but Lily tilted her head slightly as she tried to think of what could possibly be in the package. She'd certainly never seen any other package shaped like that.

"All right, princess," Harry said with a grin that made Lily suspect he was more excited for her to open the present than she was to open it. "Here is your other birthday present. Your mother and I will have to teach you how to use it, of course, but I hope that you like it."

He handed her the present, and she offered him a smile before slipping off the bed and unwrapping it. The paper fell away to reveal a beautiful new broomstick. Even if she'd never seen a racing broom, she would've recognized what it was, but having been to Hogsmeade and Diagon Alley (and Hogwarts, for that matter), she was able to fully appreciate the significance. Her parents had given Lily her very own broom. Her eyes scanned the wood, noticing in a neat, gold script: _Nimbus Elite_.

"It's the best model Nimbus has out right now," Harry explained when Lily didn't say anything at first. "They'll teach you how to fly at Hogwarts, of course, but your mum and I thought you might want to learn the basics before then. We both enjoy flying, so we suspected you might, as well."

The grin on Lily's face couldn't have been any wider. "You're going to teach me how to fly? Really?"

"Absolutely, love. We can start tomorrow if you'd like."

Lily took care to place her new broomstick gently on the window seat before hurling herself into Harry's arms. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!" she exclaimed, and despite the fact that her voice was muffled on account of her face being pressed into Harry's robes, he heard her perfect.

"You're welcome, Lily," Harry said, holding her tight. He waited for her to loosen her grip before letting her go, and watched in amusement as she practically tackled Ginny on the bed.

"Thank you!" Lily repeated, hugging her mother.

"You're welcome, darling," Ginny said, giving Lily a tight squeeze. "Now that you've opened your present, why don't you climb under the covers? You've had a busy day."

What Lily really wanted at that point was to take the broom out and begin her flying lessons that evening instead, but it was dark and somehow she figured Harry and Ginny wouldn't agree to that. So, instead she scooted toward the head of the bed and snuggled down beneath the sheets and the quilt.

Ginny moved so that she was seated on the edge of the bed, right next to Lily's hip, and Harry moved to stand beside Ginny. "Did you have a good birthday, darling?" Ginny asked, brushing the hair from Lily's face with her fingers.

"The best," Lily said with a nod, feeling drowsy again. "Thank you."

"You're welcome. You get a good night sleep, all right? You remember where our bedroom is, right?" Lily nodded, remembering from when she and Ginny had headed down for dinner. "If you need anything, don't be afraid to come in. If for some reason the door is closed, just knock, and one of us will come."

"Okay, Mom."

"I love you, Lily." Ginny leaned over to kiss her daughter's forehead. "Good night, darling."

Ginny stood, and Harry took her place, leaning over to plant a kiss of his own on Lily's head. "Good night, love. Have sweet dreams."

"Good night, Dad. Good night, Mom."

Lily smiled at them as they walked to the door, dimming the light as they went so there was just one candle flickering near the door. They left the door open, allowing soft light to filter into the room, so Lily would be able to see if she needed to get up in the middle of the night.

Thinking it really had been the best birthday ever Lily rolled over and closed her eyes, sleep claiming her almost immediately.

* * *

The following morning, Lily awoke feeling different than she had in a while. She'd spent so much time trying to figure out who her parents were it was odd waking up not plotting how to gain more information. She'd found out her parents' identities, she'd met them, and she was now living with them. Yet, things weren't magically 'normal' now. She really didn't know Harry or Ginny well yet, and while they'd seemed nothing but happy about her arrival, she wasn't entirely convinced that they'd keep her no matter what. It still bothered her that they'd been alive all this time and she was just now getting to know them.

Lily didn't want to dwell on her negative feelings, though, so she pushed them to the back of her mind as she slipped out of the bed. Her slippers were next to the bed; her mom or dad must've put them there after she'd fallen asleep. She put on her slippers and headed down to the kitchen, figuring one of her parents might be there. She wasn't sure what time it is, but she could see the sun peeking through every window, so obviously it was at least light outside.

Sure enough, upon reaching the kitchen she found both of her parents there. Her father appeared to be reading a newspaper at the table, while her mother was in front of the stove, stirring something in a small pot.

Harry, having heard the padding of slipper-covered feet, lowered his newspaper to greet his daughter with a smile. "Good morning, Lily."

"Good morning," Lily replied as Ginny turned to offer a smile and greeting of her own.

"Did you sleep well?" Ginny asked, giving the food in the pot another stir.

"Yeah." Lily sat across from Harry at the table.

Lily heard a tapping at the window above the sinks, and she turned to see a barn owl sitting there on the ledge. She watched, curious, as Ginny opened the window and allowed the owl in. It moved to the inner edge of the windowsill and waited patiently as Ginny took an envelope from its beak. Ginny offered the bird a piece of bread, which it ate before it turned and flew out the window.

Ginny turned the envelope over, grinned, and walked to the table, holding it out to Lily. "Here, darling; it's for you."

Lily stared at the envelope, amazed by the fact that the envelope was addressed to her.

Miss L. Potter  
The Kitchen  
Serenity House  
Godric's Hollow

Turning the envelope over, she recognized the Hogwarts official seal. "It's from Hogwarts…"

"Mhmm," Ginny murmured. "It's probably your acceptance letter. Go ahead, open it."

With careful fingers, Lily lifted the seal and pulled two pieces of parchment from the envelope. The top piece was a letter. Lily skipped over the letterhead and began where she saw her name, reading aloud.

"Dear Miss Potter, we are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment. Term begins on September 1. We await your owl by no later than July 31. Yours sincerely, Filius Flitwick, Deputy Headmaster."

"Congratulations, love," Harry said. "We'll have to send word back to Hogwarts. There should be a supply list there, as well."

Lily pulled the other piece of parchment from underneath. "Wow…" she breathed, skimming over the list. "That's a lot that I need."

"And we'll have it all for you before the start of term," Ginny told her. "We'll have to see if Bill, Fleur, Remus, and Tonks want to all meet up at Diagon Alley, since you, Maddy, and Teddy are all starting together."

"That sounds like an excellent idea," Harry agreed.

Ginny pulled several bowls and plates from a cabinet, then opened a drawer to extract silverware. "Breakfast is nearly ready. Harry, why don't you and Lily go ahead and set the table…"

"We can do that," he said, standing and setting the newspaper on an empty counter. "Lily, why don't you do the silverware, and I'll set out the dishes?"

"Okay," Lily agreed standing and retrieving the spoons and forks. She waited for Harry to put down a plate and bowl at each setting, and then set the fork on one side and the spoon on the other. She watched as he added a tea cup to each setting, and a regular glass to hers.

Ginny brought a bowl of fresh cut fruit and a small pitcher of milk to the table, followed by a plate of crisp bacon and a small pot of porridge, which she set on an oven mitt on the table. She didn't sit until she'd set a tea set on the table, as well.

"All right," she told her husband and daughter. "Dig in."

They enjoyed their meal, Ginny and Harry taking the opportunity to learn more about Lily while Lily asked questions about her family. It was nice to finally be able to ask questions and have them answered, no one telling her that she had to wait.

It was toward the end of breakfast that Lily asked, "What are we going to do today?"

"Well, I thought that after breakfast we'd take your new broom out so you can learn the basics," Harry told her.

Excited, Lily shoved her last piece of fruit into her mouth, chewing quickly. "I'm done," she said after swallowing. "May I please be excused?"

Ginny smiled. "Finish your milk and take your dishes to the sink, and then yes, you may be excused.

She gulped down her milk and took her empty dishes to the sink as fast as she thought she could without dropping them, and then practically raced up to her room to get changed, leaving two amused parents in her wake.

A half hour later, the family of three headed out back to the Potters' mini quidditch pitch. Harry had retrieved Lily's new Nimbus Elite from her room, as well as the Firebolt he'd bought after the war from the broom shed. Ginny had taken out her own broom, a Nimbus 2002, which she had bought after they married, much to Harry's frustration – he'd wanted Ginny to have a Firebolt of her own, but Ginny had insisted they didn't need to spend the money on more than one Firebolt. Ginny set her own broom beside her as she sat on a bench on the sidelines, allowing Harry to lead this lesson.

"All right," Harry said, setting the Nimbus Elite on the ground. "Are you right-handed or left-handed?"

"Right-handed," Lily said at once.

"Come stand over here so the broom is to your right." He waited for Lily to move. "Now, you're going to hold your hand above the broom and in a firm voice, say 'up.' It might take a few tries, so don't let it…"

Holding her hand over the Nimbus, Lily cut her father off and told the broom, "Up." It shot into her hand in less than a second, and Lily beamed at Harry.

"Excellent job, love," he praised. "Now, mount your broom." Harry demonstrated on his Firebolt. Lily copied his movements. "You are going to kick off from the ground, hover two or three feet above the grass, then come back down. Ready?" Lily nodded. "Go."

Lily kicked off and was pleased to find herself in the air. It felt more natural than learning to ride a bike had when she'd been four. "I did it!"

Harry chuckled. "You did. Now show me you can come back down on your own."

Though she really didn't want to, Lily returned to the ground.

"Okay, Lily. You've got the basics."

"Does that mean I can fly now?"

"Yes, but stay inside the limits of the pitch," Harry warned. "The enchantments will keep you invisible to muggle eyes, but if you fly outside the pitch, someone might see you."

"Okay!" Lily agreed, and she kicked off once more, shooting into the air with ease. She zoomed around the pitch with an air of excitement. It was as if she'd been flying for years. The broom moved wherever she wanted it to, and though she was higher off the ground than she'd ever been before outside of an airplane, she wasn't scared.

Harry slowly backed up until he reached Ginny, his eyes never leaving Lily's form even as he sat. "She's a natural," he remarked.

Ginny chuckled softly. "Did you expect anything less? Her parents are both excellent fliers, after all. I'd say it runs in the family."

"Think she'll be interested in quidditch?"

"I'd say it's a definite possibility. I think we ought to go join our daughter up in the air. What do you think, Mr. Potter?"

Grinning, Harry stood. Broom in hand he said, "I couldn't agree more, Mrs. Potter. Race you up!"


	14. Trouble in Paradise

**Author's Note:** All right. I have the next chapter finished, and the chapter after that close to being finished, so I should be able to update again within the next week. I don't want to post it all tonight because really, where's the fun in that? :)

Goes without saying, but feedback is really quite helpful! I hope you enjoy the chapter.

* * *

Chapter 13: Trouble in Paradise

The following weeks flew by as Lily settled in at Serenity House. She spent much of her time reading, flying, and visiting with Maddy and Teddy. A bond had formed between the three, and their parents were finding it increasingly difficult to keep them apart for more than a few days at a time.

Harry and Ginny were surprised by how easy it was dealing with Lily. She was polite and respectful, and did whatever was asked of her without complaint. Ginny had expected more resistance, not only because of what Lily had been through, but also because Ginny remembered what it'd been like to be an adolescent girl. She certainly didn't remember being so easy to live with at this age.

So when Lily began to show a hint of defiance in the third week since coming home, Ginny wasn't the least bit concerned. Lily had spent the better part of the afternoon flying, and just before six, Ginny had called Lily inside. When after five minutes Lily hadn't made an appearance in the kitchen, Ginny stepped outside to find out why and spotted her eleven-year-old twenty feet up in the air.

"Lily, it's time to come inside."

"Five more minutes, Mom," Lily called, performing a trick she'd seen her father do just days before.

"You've already had five more minutes," Ginny pointed out calmly. "It's time to wash up for dinner. Come down, please, and put your broom away."

"In a minute…"

"No, Lily, not 'in a minute.' Now."

"Mom…" Lily whined, making no move to land her broom.

"Unless you'd like your broom to stay on the ground tomorrow, Lily, you need to come down now, please."

Lily frowned, but she descended and landed gracefully, huffing as she took her broom to the broom shed.

Ginny ignored the show of attitude and headed back inside to get dinner at the table. A minute later she heard the kitchen door open, and glanced over to see Lily, cheeks rosy from flying but otherwise her usual self. Ginny was pleased to see that the frown had disappeared, as had the grumpiness.

"Go ahead and wash your hands and your face, darling, and then you can let your dad know it's time for dinner."

Lily followed Ginny's directions without comment, and as the family sat through dinner Ginny figured things were back to normal. Lily didn't object after dinner to clearing the table (which had become one of her 'chores') and, after having a bath and changing into her pajamas, enjoyed tea with her parents before settling down in the library with her father's old copy of Bathilda Bagshot's A History of Magic.

It really wasn't until a week later that Ginny began to feel concern. She'd had an incident with Lily every day that week – a couple of days it'd been more than once – and Ginny could see the difference in Lily since when she'd first arrived. She was growing moodier by the day, and often argued over the smallest things they asked her to do. Harry had noticed it as well, and the couple had spoken about it several nights after Lily had gone to bed. Ginny wanted to give Lily some time, chalking it up to adolescence and everything Lily had been through, while Harry was less willing to allow the behavior without saying anything about it to Lily.

That night, as usual, Lily was reading a book after dinner. This had become a ritual of hers; indeed, Harry and Ginny had taken to reading a bit before bed themselves, and the family enjoyed the quiet time together.

Harry got up to get something from the kitchen, and Ginny glanced at the grandfather clock in the room.

"Ten 'o clock, love," she said, looking down at her daughter, who was sprawled out on her stomach on the carpet. "It's time for bed."

Lily glanced at her mother out of the corner of her eye then looked once again at her book. "In a minute," she said, reading.

"No, Lily, not 'in a minute,'" Ginny replied in a gentle but firm voice as she silently mused over the fact that 'in a minute' had seemed to become Lily's catch phrase. Indeed, she said that whenever her parents asked her to do something she didn't feel much like doing. "Your bedtime is ten. You can continue reading your book tomorrow. Close it, please, and head on upstairs. Your father and I will be up shortly to say good night."

She closed the book with a huff. Placing it none too gently on the coffee table, Lily stormed up the stairs and into her room.

Ginny heard a bang as the door slammed shut. She let out a sigh as Harry walked into the room, looking concerned.

"What happened?" he asked. "Was that Lily's door I just heard slam?"

Nodding, Ginny explained, "Lily didn't want to stop reading to go to bed. She was a bit put out with me over it."

Harry's eyebrows furrowed together. "She shouldn't be throwing a little fit over not getting her way, though. Shouldn't we say something to her about it? Surely your own mum wouldn't have stood by and allowed such behavior..."

Ginny snorted softly. "Not hardly. I would've gone to bed with a sore bum if I'd done that." Her face became more serious. "I don't know, though, Harry. She's been through so much... It seems understandable that she's going to act out a bit; that she's going to be a bit more frustrated than usual for a while."

"I'm sure she is, love, but if we allow her to act like this now, she's just going to come to expect that she can act this way whenever she feels like it."

"I know. I just want to give her a little more time first."

He pulled Ginny into his arms and gently kissed her. "All right, love. If that's what you want, that's what we'll do."

* * *

When after a week things hadn't improved at all, Harry suggested they contact Remus. He reasoned that the elder man had spent several weeks with Lily and might have some insight into the shift in her behavior and demeanor. He was tired of the constant tension with Lily, and knew from personal experience that this kind of behavior wasn't typical in adolescents. He couldn't remember Ron, Hermione, or he being this way at that age. Granted, he hadn't had parents to answer to, but Ron and Hermione had, and they'd seemed well-adjusted enough. Certainly, Ron had never spoken to his mum the way Lily spoke to them on a regular basis.

To be honest, Harry figured Lily needed rules and consequences, and while they did have basic rules in place, there definitely weren't any consequences in place if Lily chose to break those rules. There had been one morning where Harry had asked Lily to do something, to which she'd responded, "Whatever…" in an obnoxious way. He'd nearly taken her by the arm right then and there and planted a good swat on her disrespectful bum, but he'd refrained, knowing it would upset Ginny. Part of him was surprised that his wife, who grew up with rules and a firm hand, was so against their disciplining their child, but another part recognized the guilt she felt. She wouldn't admit it out loud, but Ginny felt horrible about the fact that she hadn't been there for the first decade of her child's life, and it affected how she dealt with Lily's behavior.

Ginny wasn't thrilled with the idea of asking Remus, mostly because she had an idea what he would say and she wasn't ready to hear it. Still, Harry was insistent, so she relented, agreeing that they would find an opportunity to speak with Remus.

As luck would have it, the perfect opportunity presented itself the following morning when Remus fire called them, seeing if the family of three wanted to join him for tea that afternoon. Harry had been the one to answer the call, and had agreed on the condition that Lily not be there. He'd explained to Remus that he and Ginny needed to speak with him privately, and they wanted to make sure they weren't overheard by curious eleven-year-olds. Remus had agreed, and Harry and Ginny had to decide what Lily would do while they were there. Ginny suggested letting Lily go over to Shell Cottage, but Harry had thought it a better idea to find someone to stay with Lily at Serenity House, in case she found herself in a mood. He didn't want to put that on Bill while they were elsewhere, and thought it'd be easier to think of Lily misbehaving at home than to think of her misbehaving at someone else's home.

Ginny reluctantly agreed, and said she'd ask George if he could come over. He'd readily agreed, and so around two that afternoon Harry and Ginny found themselves preparing to head over to Remus' house.

"Lily, come down here a moment please," Harry called from the bottom of the stairs, knowing the girl would be able to hear him from her room though he was doubtful that she would come down willingly if she was in the middle of something.

Fortunately, she decided to listen, and moments later Lily was walking down the stairs. "What's going on?"

"Your mum and I are going to Remus and Tonks' house," Harry explained, slipping on a traveling cloak. "Your Uncle George is going to stay here with you while we're gone."

"What?" Lily asked, shocked that they weren't taking her. "I want to go see Teddy."

"I don't know if Teddy will even be there, love, and your mum and I need to have an adult conversation with Remus."

"I don't want to stay here," she objected. "I want to go with you."

"I understand that, Lily, but you're still staying here with George. He should be here any moment."

Lily frowned. This was NOT going well at all. "That's not fair. You're going off to Remus' and leaving me with a babysitter like I'm some sodding child!"

Harry might've been amused by the fact that Lily had begun to adopt certain British mannerisms and words if the particular word she'd just uttered hadn't been so vulgar. "Your Uncle George isn't a babysitter, and I do not want to hear that word come out of your mouth again, Lily Luna. Are we clear?"

Hearing her first and middle name together put butterflies in her stomach, but the grumpy part of her had taken over, and she rolled her eyes. "Whatever."

Harry was about to say something further when the Floo came to life and George stepped out of the flames. Taking a breath to calm himself, he smiled at his brother-in-law. "Hello, George. Thanks for coming."

George grinned. "Any time. I've been meaning to get to know my niece better." He turned to Lily, a grin still plastered on his face. "Hello, Peanut."

Lily sighed. "Hi, Uncle George."

"That doesn't sound very enthusiastic," he commented. "Why the long face?"

The girl shot a glare at her parents. Ginny seemed apologetic, but Harry raised an eyebrow, and Lily wisely looked away. She realized it might not be best to play the sympathy card until after they left. "No reason…"

"All right, we'll return in a little while," Harry told George. "Thank you again for coming. Lily, please listen to your uncle."

Ginny kissed Lily's forehead. "We'll see you soon, darling. Thank you, George…"

Lily watched them depart with a frown.

Once they'd gone, George watched Lily intently. He waited for her to say something; when she was still silent after a minute, he realized he'd have to start the conversation. "Teddy's not home, you know," he said gently.

It worked, and Lily turned quickly to look at George. "What?"

"Teddy and Tonks went out for the afternoon, so even if you went with your parents, you wouldn't have anyone to talk to. They needed to have a private conversation with Remus, and it wouldn't have been fair to take you along and confine you to a separate room while they had that conversation. Trust me, Peanut, you'll have a lot more fun here."

She wanted to argue, but George was making a lot of sense. "Why do you call me Peanut?"

George chuckled. "You're rather small, just like your parents were at your age. I figured Peanut would be a better nickname than Tiny."

Lily shrugged.

"So, you could spend the afternoon being miserable about something you can't change, or you can decide to have a good time. There's a reason I'm known as the 'fun uncle' in the family, you know…"

There was a glint in George's eye, and Lily didn't miss it. "How do you mean…?" she asked slowly, her curiosity piqued.

"Do you still have that box of Weasley products?" he asked.

"Yeah…"

He grinned. "How about I show you how to set off some of those Wild-Fire Whiz-Bangs?"

* * *

"Tea?"

"Yes, thank you," Harry replied, and Remus poured him a cup. Ginny, who was seated beside Harry, was cradling her own cup in her hands.

Remus had been surprised when Harry had insisted that they needed to speak with him privately. He'd had no indication that there'd been any problems since Lily had moved into Serenity house, but looking at the two young people he'd grown close to over the years, Remus could see how wrong he'd been in that assumption. Harry seemed drained and perhaps even a little frustrated, though he was hiding it well, and Ginny seemed, among other things, worried.

Tea poured, Remus settled back in his armchair. "So what's going on?"

Ginny sighed. "It's Lily."

"Is she all right?" Remus questioned at once.

"Yes… well, not exactly," Ginny backtracked. "She's been very… moody." Moody was putting it lightly, and Ginny knew it, but she didn't want to make it seem like her child was a monster. She still didn't think Lily had reached that level.

"How so?" probed the elder wizard.

"When we ask her to do things, she will often tell us no, or she'll just ignore us altogether. She huffs and rolls her eyes a lot."

"It's not even over anything unreasonable," Harry added, his hand seeking out Ginny's and grasping it gently. "Ginny asked Lily to put down a book and get ready for bed, since it was her bedtime, and Lily through a right fit over it and stomped all the way up to her room, slamming the door behind herself. She went flying out in the yard yesterday afternoon and got quite upset when I told her it was time to come inside for dinner. And it's not just those two instances. It's several times a day, at least, every day. I don't recall being quite that moody at eleven."

"Well, Tonks told me once that being an eleven-year-old girl is much harder than being an eleven-year-old boy, though I'm not sure she would know exactly what it's like to be a boy that age," Remus said with a wink. "However, Lily's not your typical eleven-year-old. She's been through a lot the last few months. She lost her adoptive parents, moved to a new continent, and discovered her birth parents were still alive after all this time. I imagine, while she loves you both dearly, she's still coming to terms with the fact that you've been alive and yet she never knew you until now. She had her moments while we were staying at Hogwarts, though usually I only needed to use a firm voice to snap her out of it. There's another part of her that is likely testing you, trying to see what you'll do if she says or does something she knows she shouldn't. What did you do when she threw the fit about her bedtime?"

"We gave her a few minutes to calm down, and then we went up to tuck her in for the evening," explained Ginny.

Remus raised an eyebrow. "You didn't say anything about the foot-stomping or door-slamming?"

The young mother frowned. "I know it's a huge adjustment for her, and I wanted to give her some time…"

"Ginny, it's okay to want to give Lily time, but she has to know there are boundaries, and she needs to know what to expect when she crosses one." Remus turned to Harry. "How do you feel about just sitting back and giving Lily time?"

Harry wasn't sure he was happy with being put on the spot, and he didn't think it was the best time to openly disagree with his already stressed wife, but he figured that while they were seeking Remus' help, he ought to be honest. "I don't think it's the best thing for her," Harry admitted. "I think her behavior is just going to get worse if we don't say anything."

"Oh, it will absolutely get worse," Remus said matter-of-factly. "Until you set boundaries for your daughter and enforce those boundaries, Lily's behavior is going to continue to spiral out of control, until she does something outright stupid."

Ginny shook her head. "I don't think Lily will go that…"

"Ginny, that child will continue to push until you push back. If she's not getting a reaction out of the minor things, she's going to move to something bigger. You cannot tell me that your own mother would've stood by and allowed you to throw a fit over having to go to bed."

"Well of course she wouldn't have," Ginny retorted in frustration, "but I'm not my mother, and I wasn't dealing with the same things that Lily is dealing with now."

"You are very much like Molly, and what Lily's going through shouldn't have an impact on how you allow her to behave," insisted Remus. "She needs rules, and there need to be consequences associated with breaking those rules. If you want to see Lily calm down, give her limits and stick to them."

"I don't want her to hate me."

The elder wizard sighed at the brokenness he heard in her tone. "Lily isn't going to hate you. She might get mad at times, the same way you'll get upset over her behavior from time to time, but she won't hate you for disciplining her. She loves you, even if it doesn't seem like it. She wouldn't be pushing so hard, or worrying so much about whether or not you'll give up on her, if she didn't. I know you feel guilty about everything that's happened, but you made the decision you felt was best in order to protect your child. No one here blames you for that, so it's time you stop blaming yourself. Lily needs you now. You aren't doing her any favors by sitting back and doing nothing."

* * *

Lily sat out in the quidditch pitch in the back yard, watching as George set off a particularly colorful whiz-bang that was turning cartwheels in the air. She had to admit that she was having a good time so far with George. It was different spending time with him than it had been with Bill or Remus. George was far more laid back; it was like hanging out with an overgrown kid, really.

George dropped onto the ground beside Lily. "What do you think, Peanut?"

"It's awesome, Uncle George," she said honestly. "Thank you."

"It's my pleasure. Are you having fun?"

Lily nodded. "Uncle George, can I ask you a question?"

"Sure thing, Peanut," he said, noting something different in her voice. "What's up?"

"Maddy told me that you used to have another brother…" she said in a soft voice, trailing off at the end as she bit her lip. She wasn't sure if he'd be okay with her asking, but she was curious, and if anyone would be okay with that kind of question, she thought it would be George.

He inhaled quickly, but nodded. "I did," he replied. It was the first time Lily had heard George say anything in a serious tone. "His name was Fred, and he was my twin."

"Did… did he die in the war?"

"Yes, Peanut, he did. What brought on these questions?"

"Maddy said something once," Lily explained, "about how you and Uncle Fred were pranksters when you were younger. Watching you set off the whiz-bangs made me think of it."

The honest answer made George chuckle. "We were the greatest pranksters at Hogwarts since the Marauders," he told her. "We drove your grandma nearly batty sometimes. She used to get letters from Professor McGonagall all the time about mischief we'd gotten into – of course, that was back with McGonagall was the Transfiguration teacher and Head of Gryffindor."

"Could you tell me some stories about when you and Uncle Fred were at Hogwarts?" Lily asked eagerly.

"Well, one time Fred and I were in Filch's office, and we nicked this bit of seemingly blank parchment from his stash of confiscated magical objects…" he began.


	15. A Misunderstanding

Chapter 14: A Misunderstanding

Lily spent the following afternoon at Shell Cottage, hanging out with Maddy. Harry had been hesitant to let her go, telling Ginny that he didn't think it was fair to send Lily to someone else's house and risk her behaving as grumpily there as she had been at home, but Ginny had thought that being around Maddy would lighten Lily's mood a bit.

At first, Ginny seemed to be right in her assessment. Lily and Maddy spent the afternoon in Maddy's room, first talking about wizard cards and then playing several games of wizard's chess. Lily had learned much about the game since she first arrived at Hogwarts, and proved a worthy opponent for Maddy, who was quite good at the game herself. When Ginny arrived at Shell Cottage several hours after Lily had arrived, she was pleased to hear from Bill that the girls had been nothing short of angels. Maybe all Lily had needed was a break, after all.

She walked up to Maddy's room, encouraged, and stopped in the doorway to smile at her daughter having so much fun with her cousin.

"It's time to go, Lily."

Lily remained seated on Maddy's bed, her back to the door, as she moved her pawn on the chess board. "Maddy and I aren't finished," she told her mother without turning around.

"I understand that, darling, but it's nearly time for dinner, and we need to head home," Ginny explained patiently.

"When we're done with this game…"

"Now please, Lily."

Maddy watched her cousin in disbelief. "Lily, we can play another time…"

Lily shook her head. "I want to finish this game."

"Lily."

Her mother's tone was firm; Lily could even hear the frustration in it, but she couldn't help herself. "I said when we're finished!" she said in a rather snotty way, still refusing to look at Ginny.

Having heard Lily's voice from down the hall, Bill walked over to stand beside Ginny, watching the girls in the room. "What's going on?" he asked Ginny.

Ginny sighed softly. "Lily doesn't want to leave," she told him a quiet voice.

Bill stared at his sister like she'd grown a second head. "And…?" he replied, his voice just as hushed.

Ginny understood what Bill had left unsaid. "I don't want to push her, Bill. I know it's been hard on her…"

Shaking his head, Bill cut her off. "Hard or not, she doesn't get to make all the decisions." Raising his voice just enough so that the girls would hear him, Bill said, "Lily, your mum is ready to go. Say goodbye to Maddy."

"I will when we're finished," she repeated, not bothering to look at Bill, either.

"Are you _crazy_?" Maddy hissed. "You're going to get in trouble!"

Lily shrugged her shoulders. She knew she was practically asking for trouble, but she hadn't received more than a firm 'Lily' from either of her parents since she'd gone to live with them, and part of her wanted to know how far she could push them, and if it was possible to push them away. It confused her that they hadn't taken away any privileges or even scolded her for the way she'd been treating them. If she'd done the same to Remus or Bill before, she would've found herself sleeping on her tummy and she knew it.

As such, it only half surprised her that her eldest uncle came swiftly into the room and leaned down until they were eye to eye, leaving her feeling rather intimidated. "You have three seconds to get off of that bed, say goodbye to your cousin, and walk over to your mother," he told her in a low yet stern voice that meant business.

It was practically suicide, she knew, but she couldn't help asking, "Or what?"

Bill's eyes narrowed slightly. "One."

She sighed loudly, but slid off the bed. "Bye, Maddy," she said, sounding very put out. As she turned to leave the room, she felt a sudden sting in her bum. She whirled around to stare at Bill in shock as she rubbed her rear.

"Get the attitude in check, Lily Luna."

Lily let out another sigh, though this one was softer. "Sorry, Uncle Bill."

Bill nodded once, and then motioned toward the door. "Your mum is waiting."

Ginny stood there, surprised, as Lily hurried over to her. Bill had been quite stern with Lily, even going so far as to give her a firm swat, and Lily hadn't seemed angrier with Bill over it. In fact, the attitude had deflated a bit. It didn't bother her that Bill had taken charge like that; it was well accepted in the Weasley family that any aunt, uncle, or grandparent had full permission to deal with any misbehavior they witnessed. It made her wonder though if she and Harry were doing the right thing by giving Lily so much space. She'd have to talk to Harry later. The constant battles with Lily were wearing her out.

For the time being, however, she needed to get her daughter home. "Come on, Lily," she said in a calm voice. "Your dad will likely already have dinner waiting for us."

* * *

Lily lay in bed later that night, wondering why sleep wouldn't come. She knew it had surprised Harry and Ginny when she'd said she wanted to go to bed at just 9 'o clock, but she had a lot on her mind. Her father had been his usual self at dinner, but Ginny had seemed a bit distracted. Part of Lily felt guilty for being such a brat to her mom, and another part of her was hurt by the fact that Ginny wasn't doing anything about it. Uncle Bill clearly hadn't had any qualms about telling her she was out of line (and she knew she'd been out of line at Shell Cottage), but Ginny hadn't said a word about it. It confused Lily.

Glancing at the clock in her room, Lily saw it was just past her regular bedtime. She felt an overwhelming urge to talk to her parents. She didn't know what she wanted to say, but she needed to see them. That evening's events had left her feeling particularly unnerved.

Lily donned her slippers before heading down the hall and down the stairs, careful to move silently. She didn't expect to be scolded much for being out of bed – she hadn't been scolded for much of anything – but she still didn't want to make a lot of noise. Upon reaching the bottom of the stairs, she heard voices coming from the kitchen, so she crept across the dining room and inched toward the doorway, staying out of sight.

"This isn't working, " Ginny said with a sigh.

Lily listened for Ginny to explain what she meant, but she didn't. Apparently she didn't need to, because Harry seemed to understand just fine. "What would you like to do?" he asked in return.

Ginny sat there in silence for several moments before replying, "I think we're going to have to have a talk with Lily."

Lily scooted back against the wall. She wasn't sure whether she wanted to cry or scream. They didn't want her anymore. All that talk about having missed her and loved her was just that – talk. She'd known all along it was too good to be true, and yet, she'd secretly hoped they'd prove her wrong.

Tiptoeing back up to her room, Lily closed the door and threw herself face down onto her bed. Her pillow absorbed her tears as she cried silently. What was she going to do? Where would they send her? Would she get to live with an aunt and uncle? Maybe Remus and Tonks would take her in… Remus had seemed to enjoy taking care of her well enough.

The tears slowly dried, giving way to a burning anger. How dare they tell her they loved her and wanted her when they didn't really mean it? Sitting up suddenly, she decided that if they didn't want her around, she wasn't going to stick around and wait while they decided what to do with her.

Slipping off of the bed, she pulled out a knapsack, packing a few things she thought she'd need: a clean set of clothes, her favorite stuffed animal, and a set of robes, just in case. She'd need food, but that would have to wait until after her parents went to bed. Then, she'd need a way to travel without being caught. She couldn't take her broom – she wasn't sure if she'd be seen by muggles or other wizards if she did so, and that was a chance she wasn't willing to take. Traveling by Floo would be much safer, but how would she get around without being seen once she Floo'd somewhere?

The answer came to her at once – her father's invisibility cloak.

He'd shown it to her once, after she'd seen him carrying it. The cloak had fascinated her at the time; Lily had been rendered speechless when Harry had covered himself with the cloak and subsequently vanished from Lily's sight. She'd watched him carry it to his room, so she figured it had to be kept there. The question was – how would she get her hands on it without Harry or Ginny finding out?

Lily cracked the door open, and peeked her head out. She could still hear her parents' muted voices from downstairs. If she wanted to get the cloak, she needed to get it now, before they went to bed. She didn't know how much time she had, though, and without knowing exactly where the cloak was kept she'd have a hard time searching.

Still, convinced it was her only chance, Lily silently made her way down the hall and into her parents' bedroom. She'd been in there before, of course, but she hadn't stopped then to consider where they kept everything. There was a dresser, and armoire, and a chest at the end of the bed.

She crept over to the chest on a hunch, and upon easing open the lid, discovered the familiar silvery fabric folded neatly on top. Lily gently lifted the cloak from the chest, lowered the lid, and crept back to her room, thankful she hadn't been found out. She felt the slightest bit guilty over taking the cloak – it wasn't hers after all, and even if it belonged to her father, she was still stealing – but she had to get out of there and if it meant breaking a rule or two she wouldn't normally break, then that was a risk she was willing to take.

Back in her room, Lily tucked the cloak in her knapsack. She'd have to put it on before leaving her room later, but for the meantime, she needed it to stay hidden, especially if Harry or Ginny decided to check on her before going to bed. Seeing as how the knapsack was as packed as it was going to be at the moment, she zipped it up and tucked it away in her armoire before climbing back in bed. She had an hour or two to figure out where she'd go once she left.

Two hours later, Lily felt it was time to go. Someone had poked their head in nearly an hour before, checking on her – she wasn't sure who as she'd been pretending she was asleep, and she'd heard the footsteps retreat down the hall. She hadn't heard steps on the stairs, so she was fairly confident they were in their room, and they were probably asleep. The clock in her room revealed it was half past midnight.

The eleven-year-old quickly changed into a pair of pants and a t-shirt and put on her sneakers. She took several throw pillows and tucked them under the covers, so at first glance it would look like she was still in bed. She needed to buy as much time as possible. Retrieving her knapsack, Lily took out the cloak. She put the knapsack over her shoulders before covering herself with the cloak. She stood there for a moment, marveling over the fact that she no longer saw her reflection in the mirror. Once she recovered from the shock, however, Lily wasted little time in slipping down to the kitchen. She didn't figure she'd be able to carry much, so Lily grabbed a few snacks – fruit and some bread – and tucked them into the knapsack.

Then she tiptoed into the library. The wards would sound if she opened one of the doors after everyone went to bed, but nobody should be alerted if she took the Floo, so Lily took a handful of Floo powder and threw it into the fireplace. Stepping into the innocent flames, she whispered a clear direction and felt herself hurling through the Floo network until she came out at her desired destination.

A minute later, Lily was walking unnoticed along the road in Hogsmeade. There were hardly any others out by that time, and with the cloak no one would even know she was there. She'd decided, while waiting in bed, that she'd go to Hogwarts. She didn't think she could stay where she and Remus had stayed before – surely someone would discover her before she made it in there, if it was even still there (she'd come to realize, through reading several books, that things didn't always remain the same at Hogwarts). However, her conversations with George that one afternoon had proven quite useful. Thanks to him, she knew how to get into the Shrieking Shack, and that seemed like the best place for her to hide out for a day or two until she decided what to do. No one would think to look there, because it was hard to get to, even with a wand, and Harry and Ginny wouldn't have any idea that she even knew about it.

Reaching the gates at Hogwarts, Lily closed her eyes in concentration. Seconds later, she heard the creaking of old metal and smiled slightly as she opened her eyes to the gates just open enough for her to fit through. Slipping through, she concentrated again, waiting for the gates to close completely before she continued up the path. She wasn't exactly sure how long she'd have to walk, but she had an idea of how the grounds at Hogwarts were laid out in relation to Hogsmeade, so she had an inkling of where she'd find the Whomping Willow. It was going to be a bit of a hike, she knew, but as long as she kept the cloak on, she knew she'd be okay.

Sure enough, nearly an hour and an uneventful walk later, Lily found herself a safe distance from the Whomping Willow. She knew she had to get something to touch the knob in the trunk, but if she tried to touch it with her hand the branches would get her before she had the chance, even under the cloak. Spying a long stick on the ground, Lily picked it up, careful to keep the cloak over her hands so they wouldn't be seen, and cautiously reached out with the stick, her eyes on the branches around her, until the stick touched the knob. Branches frozen, Lily crept to the hole in the trunk and slipped in.

The tunnel was dark and dirty, but eventually she made her way up into a room. Spying the stairs, she climbed up until she found herself in a sorry excuse for a bedroom. The furniture was in a state of disarray and had clearly been banged up – many times – but it was a safe place to stay, so Lily took off the cloak, tucked it into the knapsack, set the knapsack on the ground next to the bed, and laid down to try to sleep.

* * *

Ginny rubbed her eyes groggily and glanced at the clock by her bed. 4:18. It felt like she'd only been asleep a few minutes, even though it'd been several hours. She wasn't sure what had woken her, but she felt the need to check on Lily. Maybe it was the fact that Lily had gone to bed early that bothered her. Perhaps it was her need to set things right with her daughter. Whatever the reason, she needed to see Lily, even if just to assure herself that she was sleeping peacefully.

She slipped out of bed, inadvertently waking Harry in the process.

"Ginny…?" he queried, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

"I just want to check on Lily," she said in a soft voice. "I'll be right back."

Harry nodded, and Ginny slid on her slippers before heading down the hall to her daughter's room. Cracking the door open, she saw the long lump under the blankets. Unable to see Lily's head, she padded across the room without a sound, reaching over to pull back the covers just enough to reveal Lily's head. When she found nothing but pillow, she pulled back the covers all the way.

"_**HARRY!**_"

He was in the room almost at once, wand in hand. "Ginny, what's…?" He trailed off as he saw Lily's bed.

"She's gone!" Ginny cried frantically. "I came in, and I couldn't see her head so I pulled back the covers and this is what I found!"

"All right, let's not panic," Harry said, though he was doing exactly that inside his head. "We'll find her."

"You don't think someone took her, do you?" Ginny demanded. "They could've put the pillows there to hide the fact…"

Harry shook his head. "I don't think someone would've taken the time to arrange the pillows if they were trying to snatch a child in the middle of the night, and the wards would've alerted us if anyone had entered or exited the house other than through the Floo. The only people who know the Floo Network name for our home are our family and friends, so I don't think someone would've kidnapped her that way. Look around the room, see if anything is missing. I'm going to check something in our room, and I'll be right back."

Ginny wasn't at all happy with that idea, but she nodded, beginning a detailed search to see if she noticed anything out of place as Harry hurried out of the room. She was alone perhaps a minute before he rejoined her.

"I can't find her knapsack," Ginny admitted, just as frantic. "Her sneakers were up here last night, too, but I don't see them either."

He nodded, as if he expected this. "My cloak is gone," he revealed. "I think… it looks like Lily might have run away."

This seemed to increase the tears already pooling in Ginny's eyes. "Why would she run away?"

"I don't know, love, but we're going to find out, and we're going to find her. We need to contact everyone we know and see if anyone knows anything. Fire call Bill and Fleur; it's possible that Lily Floo'd there undetected. I'm going to send word to Remus and Tonks."

Another nod and Ginny flew down the stairs to the fireplace to contact her eldest brother.

Fifteen minutes later, there was a gathering of witches and wizards in the library at Serenity House. Bill and Remus had come at once, as had Arthur, George, and Hermione. Molly had been adamant about coming, too, until Arthur had reminded her that someone ought to remain at the Burrow in case Lily showed up there.

"All right," Arthur said, trying to exude calm despite the fact that he was worried about his granddaughter. He and Molly had been through this before with Bill when he'd been young, but he hadn't had the means to go very far, and he was very concerned about how far Lily might have gotten already. "What do we know for sure?"

Ginny tried to take a calming breath. "I went to check on Lily just after four, and she wasn't in her bed. Pillows had been arranged under the covers to look like someone was sleeping there. I haven't been able to find her knapsack or her sneakers. Her favorite stuffed animal is nowhere to be found, either."

"My invisibility cloak is missing," Harry added, wrapping an arm around Ginny's shoulders. "No one knows where I keep it other than Ginny, but if Lily had looked, she would've been able to find it easily enough."

Arthur nodded. "Is anything missing from the kitchen?"

"I'll go look," Ginny said, walking off at once.

"It doesn't seem like she was taken, right?" Harry asked Arthur. "I mean, these things wouldn't be missing, the pillows wouldn't have been put there, if someone had kidnapped Lily, right?"

"No, anyone trying to take Lily wouldn't have taken so much care," Arthur agreed. "I also don't think Lily would've gone quietly, and you would've likely heard something, even if they'd put a full body-bind spell on her quickly. It seems much more likely that she decided to run off on her own."

Ginny returned, frowning. "I remember there being more food before we went to bed, but I can't pinpoint anything definitely being gone other than a loaf of bread."

"So, we're operating under the assumption that Lily has run away," Arthur confirmed. "It looks like she took her knapsack, her favorite stuffed animal, and Harry's cloak. She also probably took some food, meaning she's not planning on being found quickly. Lily hasn't shown up at anyone's house yet, so where would she be most likely to go from here, and how would she get there?"

"Her broom is still here," Ginny added softly. "And she couldn't have gone out a door or window or it would've triggered the wards around the house."

"So she took the Floo," Bill said. "She would've had to whisper the destination not to be heard, and she would've had to whisper it clearly. She was headed somewhere she's been before."

Arthur looked around the room. "Where has Lily traveled by Floo often enough that she'd remember the Floo Network name?"

"She spent a lot of time at Hogwarts," Hermione pointed out. "What if she tried to go back there? There was a specific name for the Floo connection in your quarters, wasn't there, Remus?"

Remus nodded. "There was, but she wouldn't be able to enter. That grate in Floo Network is locked when the quarters aren't in use. Otherwise anyone would be able to enter Hogwarts if they knew the name."

"What about Diagon Alley?" Bill suggested. "She could've Floo'd to the Leaky Cauldron."

"She could be at the Leaky Cauldron," agreed Hermione. "You need a wand to get into Diagon Alley, though. She couldn't open that entrance without one, even if she remembers which bricks to tap."

George listened to the conversation, remembering his own conversation with Lily the day before about his exploits at Hogwarts with Fred. He remembered telling her about the secret passages they'd discovered, including one to a certain deserted building in the neighboring village.

He wasn't sure how she would've made it there without a wand, but he had a feeling of where his niece had intended to go. "Harry, where's the map?"

Harry was confused by the question. "Which map?"

"The Marauder's Map," George specified. "You still have it, right?"

"Yes, I still have it."

"Let me see it, will you?"

"How will it…?"

George shook his head. "Just get it, Harry."

Still confused, Harry left the room for a moment. George caught the uncertain expression in Remus' eyes.

"George, it would be practically impossible for Lily to get into Hogwarts unnoticed," he explained rationally. "She can't get into the quarters we were staying at, and she doesn't know the Floo Network name for any other fireplace in the castle."

"I'm sure she didn't Floo into the castle itself," George replied. "But she is extremely clever and I do believe she could've gotten to Hogwarts undetected, especially with Harry's cloak and that rather unnerving control over her magic that you all have mentioned before."

"I think the Leaky Cauldron is a much more likely place, assuming she stayed in the wizarding world and didn't travel to a muggle area," disagreed Bill.

Harry returned with the map, which he'd already activated. "I've glanced at the map already, but I can't find her."

Hand held out, George waited for Harry to hand over the map. "Call it a hunch, but I think I know where Lily is. I'm going to go to Hogwarts."

"I'll go with you," Harry said at once.

"No," George said, holding a hand up. He saw a look of anger pass over Harry's face, and rushed to explain. "Give me a chance to find Lily and talk to her. I think you'll have an easier time with her when you get her home if someone has a chance to talk to her first, and I'm the only person in this room who Lily wouldn't expect to scold her outright upon finding her."

"He has a point, Harry," Bill said, joining in once again. "If Remus, Hermione, Dad, or I were to show up, she'd expect a lecture in the very least. Since we don't know what spurred her to run off, it might be better for someone other than you or Ginny to find her first, anyway. George is the best candidate, and I've known George his whole life. I can see how confident he is about knowing where Lily is."

"All right," Harry acquiesced, taking a calming breath. "I can't deny that if anyone knows the ins and outs of Hogwarts, George, it's you. Ginny and I will wait here then."

"The rest of us will check other places Lily would know about, just in case," Remus said as George Apparated out of the house. "If Lily turns up at anyone else's home, we'll know about it. We _will_ find her."

Harry nodded, pulling Ginny into his arms. He believed they'd find her. He just hoped they found her before something happened to her.


	16. Home

Chapter 15: Home

George appeared in the middle of the street in Hogsmeade, map in one hand, wand in the other. He wasted no time in walking out of town and up to the main entrance to Hogwarts, using his wand to silently open the gates. He knew it seemed unlikely that Lily was at Hogwarts; to be honest he didn't think she was _at_ Hogwarts anymore. In fact, he hadn't located her anywhere in the castle or on the grounds on the map, but then again, he hadn't expected to. He imagined she was just outside of the map's parameters, and had really only asked for the map to verify she didn't leave the place he suspected she was at.

Without the ability to Apparate while on Hogwarts grounds, it was a hike around the castle and over to where the Whomping Willow stood. Having learned of the purpose of the tree from Harry a few years back, George flicked his wand, causing a stick to rise from the ground and fly directly at the small knot in the trunk. The branches froze, and George entered the passageway unknown to most students, both past and present.

He quietly made his way up into what he knew to be the Shrieking Shack. It didn't take long to find Lily, fast asleep on a dingy old bed. He picked up a nearby wooden chair, set it down soundlessly beside the bed, and sat. He figured he'd give Lily an hour or so to wake up on her own before waking her himself.

* * *

Lily awoke a little after six, her stomach growling louder than a hungry tiger. She stretched and rolled over to be met with a rather unpleasant surprise. The word slipped out of her mouth before she could stop it.

"Shit."

"That's rather strong language for a peanut such as yourself," George remarked, somewhat amused. "Best not to let your parents hear you talking like that."

She pushed herself up to a sitting position on the bed, scooting until her back touched the wall. She couldn't believe someone had found her. "What are you doing here, Uncle George?"

He leaned forward in his chair, resting his elbows on his thighs. "What are _you_ doing here, Lily?"

"I asked first," she told him, trying to avoid the question.

"I'm older," George retorted.

Lily watched as he arched an eyebrow, and sighed. "I ran away, and I'm not going back."

George had already known this, of course, but needed to figure out why she'd done so. "Hmm, is that right? Well, now, suppose you tell me why you thought you needed to run away."

She frowned, looking away. "I don't want to talk about it."

"Actually, I think you do."

Lily shook her head. "It doesn't matter whether I do or don't."

"Of course it matters."

"No! It doesn't!" she shouted, finally looking up. George could see the tears in her eyes in spite of the anger in her voice. "They don't want me anymore anyway!"

A ha. Now they were getting somewhere. "What are you talking about, Lily?"

"My _parents_," spat Lily. "They don't want me. All that talk about missing me, and us being a family now, and it was all bunch of crap!"

He wasn't sure how she got such a ludicrous idea in her head, but he sure as hell needed to squash that fear of hers. "Peanut," George began gently, using his pet name for her, "What makes you think they don't want you?"

"They said so!"

He arched an eyebrow at that. There had to be some sort of misunderstanding. "Those were their exact words?"

"Yes! I mean… no, not exactly, but I know it's what they meant!" she insisted.

He didn't tell her that she must've misheard them. He knew such a statement wouldn't be well-received just yet. "What exactly did they say to you?"

She lost a little bit of her steam, but she was still convinced of their guilt. "Well... not _to_ me, but I heard them!"

"All right, what exactly did you hear them say?"

It unnerved Lily, not to have someone arguing back with her. George wasn't bothering to tell her she was wrong, either – she hadn't expected that. "Mom told Dad that it wasn't working…" she revealed. "He asked her what she wanted to do, and she thought they needed to talk to me."

George smiled, which only served to frustrate Lily and refuel her fire.

"It's not funny!" shrieked Lily, tears streaming down her face.

"I need to teach you the fine art of eavesdropping, Peanut. First lesson: if you're going to listen in on someone else's conversation, make sure you listen to all of it."

Lily was silent for a minute while she stared at George. Finally, she whispered, "What do you mean?"

"Your mum and dad wouldn't dream of sending you away," he told her. "If you'd heard the rest of their conversation, you would've known that."

"What were they talking about then?"

"You're going to have to ask your parents that yourself." Not having heard the conversation himself, George honestly couldn't tell her what they'd been talking about. Even if he had known the context of what Lily had overheard, this was a conversation the eleven-year-old needed to have with her parents.

She sat there for several moments, just thinking. "They don't want to get rid of me?"

"Not in the least."

Lily felt the urge to believe George. He wasn't the type of person to tell her half-truths or to hide things. Whatever was going on, he told her – no bull. If he said her parents still wanted her, it had to be true. Her heart felt a bit lighter than it had in weeks, just for a moment, before a weight crashed down, pulling Lily's optimism down with it.

"They're going to be so mad…" she mumbled, frowning.

All the time she'd spent trying to get a reaction out of them, this was the first time she'd acted without contemplating the consequences beforehand, and it was the worst thing she'd done yet. Surely they'd have something to say about her running off in the middle of the night.

"Nah," George said with a shake of his head. "They're worried. That's not to say you aren't in trouble, because you're in a world of trouble, Peanut, but they'll be glad to have you home, and everything will be okay."

She wanted to believe him with every fiber of her being, but it was hard knowing that she dug herself such a hole.

"How did you find me?"

"That's my secret. Where's your dad's cloak?"

The shock was written all over her face. "… How did you know about that?"

"Your dad noticed it was gone almost immediately, Lily, and quite frankly, it's the only way you could've possibly made it through Hogsmeade and up to Hogwarts without being noticed. Is it in your knapsack?" She nodded. "Good. Go ahead and collect your things and we'll head back to your house."

"Can't we wait a bit before we go?" she pleaded softly.

George understood her hesitance, and he really wanted to be able to be the 'cool uncle,' but Harry and Ginny had to be beside themselves with worry, particularly after the others hadn't found Lily anywhere. He couldn't let her continue to take her time, and she needed to understand that it wasn't up for debate. "Lily, your mum and dad still have no idea if you're all right. They don't even know for sure that I found you. No, we cannot wait a bit. Collect your things, please."

She was a little surprised by the firm tone his voice had suddenly adopted, and hurried to make sure everything was in her bag. Slinging it over her shoulders, she turned back to George. "Are we travelling by Floo?"

"No, we'd have to go up and into the castle for that, or walk all the way to Hogsmeade. It'll be quicker if we Apparate.

"I don't like Apparating," Lily replied with a frown. "It makes me feel sick."

"Perhaps next time you shouldn't run away from home," George suggested with a somewhat pointed look and a firm tone. "Come take hold of my arm."

Lily did so reluctantly, and George turned on the spot. Moments later, they were standing along the stone path that led up to Serenity House. Lily held onto George just a bit longer as she waited for the nausea to pass.

The door opened, and Lily saw her father standing there. He looked so relieved to see her.

"Lily!"

Harry darted out the door and rushed to where they stood. He pulled the knapsack off of Lily's shoulders and scooped her up into his arms, hugging her so tight that she nearly couldn't breathe. "Thank Merlin you're home." He set her on the ground, but didn't let go of her shoulders. "Are you all right? Are you hurt at all?" Even as he asked her, his eyes roamed over her body, checking for any injuries.

"I'm… I'm okay," she whispered.

He nodded his head, seemingly satisfied with his assessment and her confirmation. Then, without warning, he reached behind her and landed a hard swat to the seat of her pants.

"Ow!" Lily cried out. She hadn't expected that at all, and it had _hurt_!

"Do you have any idea how worried your mum and I have been since we discovered you weren't in your bed?" Harry demanded, his voice thick with emotion.

"I'm sorry," Lily choked out, tears pooling in her eyes.

"_**Lily!**_"

She turned her head just in time to see her mother before she was scooped up into another set of arms. Ginny was crying, and Lily felt guilty for causing her to cry like that.

"I'm sorry, Mom," she whispered.

Ginny squeezed Lily extra tight before setting her on her feet. "Not as sorry as you're going to be, Lily Luna. What were you _**thinking**_?"

Lily glanced desperately at George for help, but he shook his head with a sad smile. "I'm sorry Peanut, but you're going to have to explain that one yourself."

"Thank you so much, George," Ginny said, pulling Lily back against her chest and wrapping her arms around her. "Where did you find Lily?"

"I think it would be best if Lily explained it all. I'll take this as my cue to leave. If you need anything, you know how to reach me. I'll check in later to see how everyone is doing." He planted a kiss on Lily's forehead. "Remember what I said, Peanut. Everything will be all right." Offering her one more smile, he turned and Disapparated.

Lily, now alone with her parents, glanced from Ginny to Harry. Despite George's assurances, it didn't seem like it was going to be 'all right,' not for now, anyway. Her dad had already swatted her once, and her mom had told her that she was going to be sorrier than she already was. They'd never discussed what would happen if Lily broke a rule – up until this point they really hadn't punished her for anything she'd done – but she got the sinking feeling that their idea of discipline was quite similar to Uncle Bill's and Remus'.

"I think we should go inside and have a talk," Harry told Ginny and Lily as he picked up the fallen knapsack. "Lily has quite a bit to talk to us about, don't you, young lady?"

His voice was muted but stern, and Lily meekly nodded her head. Ginny loosened her grip on Lily and, keeping one arm around her shoulders, guided her daughter into the house. "Have you eaten at all this morning?" she asked Lily.

The eleven-year-old shook her head. "No," she said in a soft voice. "Uncle George was already there when I woke up."

"All right, then before we talk, I want you to have some breakfast."

"I'm not hungry."

Ginny frowned. "Lily Luna."

"Please, Mom… I can't eat right now; just thinking about food makes me feel sick."

She felt torn between demanding that Lily eat something and letting her be. She could see that her child looked scared, though she wasn't sure if that was because she knew she was in trouble or if she was scared for some other reason. Ginny shuddered to think that she or Harry could be the reason Lily was scared.

"If you're sure, I suppose breakfast can wait until after we talk. I guess we should go up to your room then."

Lily didn't put up a fight as she climbed the stairs, Harry and Ginny following close behind her. She walked straight into her room and sat on the edge of her bed, watching her parents warily as they both entered the room. Ginny pulled out the chair from the desk and set it closer to the bed before sitting. Harry wordlessly pointed his wand at the chest that sat at the foot of Lily's bed and levitated it over so he could sit beside Ginny.

"All right, young lady," Harry said in a voice stern enough to put butterflies in Lily's belly. "Your mother and I deserve an explanation. Where in Merlin's name have you been?"

She picked a spot on her lap to study as she spoke. "The Shrieking Shack."

"The Shrieking Shack?!" exclaimed Ginny. "How did you get in there? You would've had to make it onto Hogwarts grounds to get to the entrance, and you would've needed to know how to get under the Whomping Willow!"

"I did…" Lily mumbled.

Ginny could hardly believe her ears. "How did you know about the Whomping Willow?"

"Uncle George told me… He was telling me stories about when he and Uncle Fred were at Hogwarts that day you and Dad had him stay with me, and I asked him about the Shrieking Shack. He told me all about it."

She wanted to be angry with her brother, but truth be told, Ginny could understand why he'd shared the story. None of them would've expected Lily to make use of that information any time soon, particularly without a wand and before she'd even left for Hogwarts. "And just how did you get to Hogwarts?"

"I, uh, Floo'd into Hogsmeade and walked up to Hogwarts."

"Wasn't the gate locked?" Lily could only nod. "Then how did you… You opened the gate, didn't you?" Another nod. Lily didn't need to explain further; Ginny understood that Lily had opened the gates magically, even without a wand. "So you Floo'd into Hogsmeade, walked to Hogwarts, and managed to open the gate," Ginny repeated. "How is it that no one saw you?"

Ginny didn't want to accuse Lily out right, even though she and Harry were confident the child had taken the cloak. She figured it was best to give Lily the chance to confess on her own and take responsibility for her actions.

Lily wasn't sure she wanted to admit to stealing the cloak. She wasn't even sure they'd realized it was missing, and if they hadn't, it could possibly be one thing they wouldn't have to know about. She was in so much trouble already… and yet, Lily wasn't sure she could lie about it. Not right then, when she was feeling wretched about what she'd done.

"Did you take my cloak, Lily?" Harry finally asked after what seemed like an eternity of silence.

She slowly nodded her head. "I'm sorry," she offered, refusing to look at either of them.

"Why did you run away, Lily?"

That was the one question Lily absolutely did not want to answer. "Could we just skip that part and go straight to me being in trouble?" she asked, chancing a peek at Harry's face. She wished she hadn't – his expression was just as serious as it had been before.

"No."

She focused on her hands in her lap, and said in a voice barely above a whisper, "I thought you didn't want me anymore."

She felt a hand under her chin, and it slowly lifted her head until she couldn't help but look at Ginny. "What was that, Lily?"

"I… um… I thought you didn't… want me… anymore…"

Ginny was horrified. "Lily, why would you ever think such a thing?"

"I overheard you and Dad talking one night… you said… you said something wasn't working. When Dad asked you what you wanted to do, you said that you needed to talk to me. I thought you were going to tell me that you didn't want me. I was mad… and hurt."

"I want you to listen to me very carefully, Lily Luna," Ginny said firmly, taking Lily's face into her hands. "There is not a thing you can possibly do that would ever make your father and I no longer want you. You are our daughter. We love you more than life itself, and _nothing_ is going to change that. Do you understand me?"

"Yes…"

"Good. I understand how you would've felt hurt, thinking what you did, but you made some seriously poor choices as a result. You ran away without even trying to talk to either us about it, leaving us worried that something horrible had happened to you, and you stole your father's cloak to try to keep from being found. You know you're in serious trouble, don't you?" Lily nodded, and Ginny turned to her husband. "Harry, could you please give us a couple of minutes?"

Even without meeting Ginny's gaze, Harry knew what his wife was planning on doing. They hadn't discussed it, but he'd had the same idea himself. "Are you sure?"

"I'm sure."

"In that case, I'll be downstairs when you two are finished." Harry stood, returned the chest to its previous position, and pressed a kiss to Lily's forehead before walking out of the bedroom, closing the door behind him.

"Come here, Lily," Ginny said in a firm voice.

Lily slowly slid off her bed and took two steps toward her mother. Ginny wordlessly pulled Lily across her lap. The girl had expected this, and grabbed hold of Ginny's leg to steady herself, but when her mother pulled down her pants and underwear in one fluid motion, Lily couldn't help but whine a bit. "Mommy no…"

Being called 'Mommy' instead of just 'Mom' tugged at Ginny's heartstrings, but she wouldn't allow it to deter her. Instead, she landed a hard swat on Lily's unprotected bottom, eliciting a yelp from the eleven-year-old. "Lily Luna Potter, you put your life in danger last night when you left this house without anyone knowing," she lectured, swatted her twice more. "Your father and I were scared out of our minds." Another two swats. Ginny heard a hitch in Lily's breath. "You can expect to have your bare bum smacked any time you do something so foolish or dangerous!" She landed five more swats, and Lily burst into tears.

Ginny began spanking in earnest, landing maybe 10-15 more swats before deciding that it was over. Lily didn't notice at first that it had ended, and just laid there crying. Ginny righted her clothes and lifted her onto her feet so that she could see Lily's face. "Don't ever scare me like that again, Lily Luna. Do you understand?"

Lily nodded quickly, tears and mucus running down her face. "I'm… sorry…" she managed in-between sobs.

At once, Ginny pulled Lily into her arms and held her. "I know, darling," she assured her daughter. "It's all right now."

Smaller arms wrapped around Ginny's torso as Lily cried into her mother's robes. Ginny just held her, allowing her to let out the emotions she'd held in for months. They stayed that way for several minutes, until Lily's sobs had quieted.

"Feeling better?" Lily nodded silently against Ginny's shoulder. "We should go downstairs and see what your dad is up to."

"Am I still in trouble?"

"No, you are not still in trouble, although your broom is going to stay on the ground for the next week."

She was disappointed, but Lily wasn't entirely surprised. She'd really expected to be outright grounded for weeks, so she supposed one week without her broom wasn't as terrible as it could be. "What about Dad's cloak?"

"You'll have to talk to your father about that."

The butterflies returned. "…Can I just stay up here instead?"

Ginny smiled. "You'll be fine, darling. Come on. You need to eat some breakfast, and then a nap might be in order. I don't know how much sleep you got last night, but I'm sure it wasn't enough."

Lily really didn't want to go downstairs, but she knew she didn't have much of a choice, so she quietly descended the stairs with her mother, trailing behind as Ginny entered the kitchen. Harry was there at the kitchen table, his face hidden behind a newspaper. She cast a nervous glance at Ginny, who gave her a reassuring nod.

"Dad…?"

Harry looked up from his copy of the Daily Prophet, offering Lily a small smile. He was sure they still needed to have a talk, but he wanted her to know he wasn't angry. "Yes, love?"

Lily wrung her hands, but she maintained eye contact. "I'm sorry for taking your invisibility cloak," she apologized.

Placing the paper on the table, he crooked a finger at Lily, motioning her over. She walked, albeit slowly, over to her father.

"Taking something that belongs to someone else without permission is stealing," he explained in a serious voice. "You know that, right?" Lily nodded. "If I find out that you've stolen anything in the future, there will be serious consequences. Is that understood?"

"Yes sir."

"Then we won't talk about it anymore. Come sit down and have some breakfast."

Lily warily eyed the wooden chairs, but sat without complaint. As much as her bottom had hurt only minutes before, she was surprised to find that she wasn't too terribly uncomfortable sitting now.

She watched silently as Ginny pulled out a couple of boxes of cold cereal and a pitcher of milk. She set everything on the table, along with three bowls and three spoons.

Breakfast was a quick and quiet affair. Lily was mulling over things, still feeling a bit bad about what she'd done, and Harry and Ginny were thinking about the conversation they knew they needed to have with their daughter. When everyone had finished eating, Ginny waved her wand, sending everything to the sink, surprising Lily. Usually she had to help clear the table.

"I think we should go ahead and have a family discussion," Ginny said resolutely. Lily's running away had made her realize that she needed to hold Lily accountable for her behavior, and that started with giving her clear rules with clear consequences. She hadn't had the chance to speak with Harry about it since Lily had returned home, but she knew without a doubt he felt the same way.

Indeed, he agreed, saying, "I think that's an excellent idea, love."

"I want to start by explaining your father's and my conversation from last night," she continued, speaking directly to Lily. "While I am not condoning the fact that you were listening in on a conversation that was never meant for your ears, I want you to understand exactly what your dad and I meant that night.

"I know that the past few months have been rough for you, darling, and I wanted to ease the transition as much as possible. I thought we were helping you by giving you extra space and not scolding you for your behavior. I finally realized that it wasn't working, though. You were acting up more and more, and our inaction was only hurting you. When you heard me tell your father that this wasn't working, I meant the fact that we weren't doing anything, and when I told him we needed to talk to you, it was so we could lay down some more concrete rules and consequences should you choose to break those rules."

"Oh," Lily murmured, surprised by how off-base she'd been. She couldn't think of anything else to say to that.

"So that's what we're going to do now," Ginny continued. "We're going to set some clear rules, and we're going to go ahead and set definite consequences for at least some of those rules, so you know what to expect if you break a rule. All right?"

Lily nodded. "All right."

"The first, and most important rule, is that you never, ever put yourself in danger. That is not negotiable, and if you break that rule, you will get a spanking each and every time. Period."

She thought Ginny had made that abundantly clear upstairs earlier, but Lily still nodded.

"Your father already told you that stealing is not acceptable. Lying is also unacceptable, and will always land you in more trouble than whatever the lie was originally about."

"What will happen if I lie?"

"You'll get a spanking in addition to whatever the consequence is for what you lied about in the first place," Harry told her seriously.

So far, Lily wasn't surprised by anything they'd said. She'd expected the consequences to be bigger for breaking such rules.

"I'm sure Remus had this rule with you before, but we expect you to start acting more respectfully," Harry continued. "It is absolutely okay for you not to agree with everything we say or do, but it is unacceptable for you to talk in a disrespectful manner. The eye rolling, foot stomping, door slamming, temper tantrums, and uttering 'whatever' is going to stop. Part of being respectful also means using appropriate language, so I don't want to hear any vulgar words coming out of your mouth."

"Yes, sir," she answered respectfully.

"Also, when your father and I ask you to do something, Lily, we need you to do it the first time we ask, not 'in a minute,'" Ginny added. "Do you understand the rules so far?"

"Yes, ma'am. What happens if I break one of those rules?"

"It will depend on how serious it is. You might be restricted from your broom or seeing your friends. We might send you to your room to cool down or reflect on how you're acting. If you're getting particularly mouthy or using a lot of crude language, you might earn a mouth soaping. Or, you might just receive a verbal warning. Whatever the consequence, you will understand why you're receiving that consequence, and we will love you regardless."

"Okay."

"If there are any other rules that your father and I think of later, we'll discuss them with you then. In the meantime, I'm sure you didn't get much sleep last night, and your father and I certainly didn't, so I think our whole family could benefit from a nap. Head on up to your room, and we'll come up to tuck you in shortly."

Lily didn't want to go up, especially alone, but she figured she'd caused enough trouble for one morning. So, instead of arguing, she quietly stood, pushed in her chair, and made her way up to her room. Once there, she kicked off her shoes and slipped under the covers, pulling them up to her chin as she rolled onto her side.

It didn't take long for Harry and Ginny to come up to her room. Harry kissed her forehead and brushed the hair out of her face before wishing her pleasant dreams and heading off to the master bedroom to try to catch another hour or two of sleep. Ginny, recognizing the look on Lily's face, sat beside her on the bed.

"Close your eyes and rest, Lily," she said gently, running her fingers through Lily's hair in a soothing manner. "I'll stay here until you fall asleep."

Lily managed a small, sleepy smile. "Thank you, Mom."

"Of course, darling," she said, continuing her ministrations.

The effect was almost immediate, and Lily's eyes slowly fluttered closed as she succumbed to sleep.


	17. A Little Bit of Normal

Chapter 16: A Little Bit of Normal

"I can't believe you aren't even grounded…"

Lily picked up a red jellybean from a small box of Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans and cautiously nibbled the end of it. "Raspberry," she said with satisfaction, popping the rest of the bean into her mouth. "And I can't ride my broom for a week."

"A week?" snorted Maddy. "If I had run away, I wouldn't be able to fly or see anyone for a month, at least. Probably wouldn't be able to sit for that long, either."

"Yeah, well, I didn't really get off lightly there," Lily admitted. "Mom set my butt on fire, which is probably the only reason Dad didn't. I really expected him to do it, you know? Mom has been so… laid back about everything I've done."

Indeed, Lily had completely expected a real spanking from Harry, after he'd swatted her that morning. She'd been surprised when Ginny had taken her to task instead, although she wasn't sure she got off lightly as a result. Her mother seemed to have just as heavy of a hand.

"Which is really weird," Maddy commented, "because everyone says that Aunt Ginny is just like Grandma Weasley, and I've heard stories about what Grandma Weasley was like when Dad and them were growing up." Maddy tasted a yellow-colored bean, which she promptly spit into a paper bag. "Yuck!" she exclaimed, putting the rest of the jelly bean in the bag.

"What flavor did you get?" Lily asked curiously.

Maddy shook her head. "I don't know, but it was awful. So are things better with Uncle Harry and Aunt Ginny? You seem to have less of a death wish now…"

Lily caught the gleam in Maddy's eye, and rolled her own eyes. "Ha ha," came her sarcastic reply. "You're such a comedian. Yeah, things are better. They're not letting me get away with anything anymore. I got a bit cheeky with Dad this morning. I tried to talk him into letting me ride my broom earlier than they'd said, and he wouldn't budge, and I became frustrated. I think part of me wanted to see what he would do, and if he or Mom would relent on the broom grounding."

"How cheeky do you mean?" Maddy asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I said it wasn't bloody fair that I couldn't go on my broom." Lily watched as Maddy arched the other eyebrow. "He warned me about my language, and I might've told him to sod off…"

The almost-eleven-year-old shook her head slowly. "I take that back. You definitely still have a wish list. What did Uncle Harry do?"

"Let's just say," Lily said as she ate the rest of a green bean flavored jellybean, "that I've discovered that no matter how much you rinse you can't get rid of the taste of soap for hours."

"I could've told you _that_."

The girls sat in a comfortable silence for several minutes, nibbling on jellybeans as Lily reflected on how much her life had changed since the spring.

It seemed odd, how much more carefree she felt these days. Since the night she'd ran away, Lily found it easier to trust that she was home for good. It hadn't been an exaggeration when she told her cousin that she wasn't getting away with anything now; indeed, any time Ginny or Harry thought she was stepping out of line, they firmly reeled her right back in. Yet, Lily was actually happier now that she had clear rules that she was expected to follow.

Now that things were calming down and the family of three was settling into a routine, Lily found herself looking forward to things. Maddy's birthday was a mere week away, and Lily was already plotting what to give her favorite cousin in honor of the occasion. Also, now that Lily, Teddy, and Maddy had all received their Hogwarts letters, they were pestering their parents to take them to Diagon Alley to get their supplies. To their delight, the adults were agreeing to meet up there so the three friends could shop together.

"So what should we do tonight?" Maddy eventually asked, interrupting Lily's thoughts.

Lily grinned, a dozen different ideas of how she and Maddy could get into mischief without breaking any major rules during their sleepover coming to mind. "Well… When Uncle George was over here last week, he taught me how to use the Weasley products he gave me for my birthday," she said with a wink.

Maddy grinned as well. "Think Aunt Ginny would be terribly mad if we tried out one or two?"

"If she is, we'll just pretend we didn't know what we were doing. Uncle George said the key to any mischief is playing innocent…"


End file.
